Mutual Understanding
by StormWolf10
Summary: AU. Despite having settled into the Broadchurch community after the closure of the Danny Latimer case, Alec Hardy doesn't feel that he quite belongs. His daughter still won't return his calls, and he hates all of the perfect families in Broadchurch. But will that all change when Rose Tyler and her kid brother Tony move to the town?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Posted to see if it's actually any good… With thanks to A Who in Whoville, who gave me some advice :)**

"Tony! Tony, don't you dare run off!"

Alec Hardy looked up at the frantic voice, just in time to see a little blonde-haired boy of about four or five run into the middle of the road. Both his fathering instincts and Detective Inspector instincts kicked in as he saw a bus heading down the road, straight towards the boy. Not even pausing to think, and running faster than he had in a long time, he grabbed the little boy around the waist, reaching the opposite pavement just as the bus trundled by.

"Tony!"

Alec settled the wide-eyed boy on his feet, and looked up to see a young blonde woman hurrying towards them. He watched as she scooped the boy into her arms, cradling him close. She couldn't have been much older than twenty. Teen Mum, Alec figured.

"Don't you dare do that again," she told the boy quietly, eyes closed.

The boy nodded slightly, squirming in her grip.

"You should really keep a better eye on your son," Alec told the woman, slightly irritated.

The woman's eyes snapped open.

"He's not my son," she responded.

Immediately, Alec was in full DI mode.

"He isn't?"

The young woman shook her head.

"He's my little brother," she replied.

Alec blinked.

"Oh," he replied, not quite sure what to say to that.

The woman gave him a wry smile.

"I know," she sighed, still holding the little boy- her brother- to her. "You figured I had him when I was only a teenager, a single Mum on her own, who can't control her kid." She trailed off, looking up and down Broadchurch High Street. "I think a lot of them think that."

Alec sniffed and straightened his coat, feeling a little awkward.

"Well, anyway," Alec announced awkwardly, "you really need to teach him to not run across roads and stuff."

The woman nodded.

"Yeah, that's next on our list, isn't it, Tony?" she announced, although more to the boy than to Alec. The little blonde-haired boy nodded, squirming, and the woman finally settled him back on the pavement. "Well, that and stranger danger."

There was an uncomfortable pause.

"I take it you've just moved here?" Alec asked abruptly, noting that her accent was nothing like the Dorset accent of the Broadchurch residents.

The woman nodded again.

"Yeah," she replied with a small smile. "We rent a house up on the hill. Ashbrook Road. Me and Tony had to get out of London, after… After what happened." She blinked, and seemed to only just remember she hadn't introduced herself. She stuck her hand out at Alec, a bright smile on her face. "I'm Rose, by the way. Rose Tyler."

"Alec Hardy," Alec responded, shaking Rose's hand. "Detective Inspector Hardy."

At that, Tony's eyes went wide, and he gazed up at Alec with an expression that could only be described as 'awe-struck'.

"You're a Policeman?" the little boy asked eagerly.

Alec nodded, desperately trying to recall how to speak to little children; his daughter was so grown up, mid-teens, and he couldn't quite remember what it was like to talk to a small child. Even Ellie's two didn't quite fit the bill- Tom had started senior school and Fred could only just say Alec's name.

"Yes, I am. Have a badge and everything," Alec told the boy, watching Tony's face light up further.

"Why aren't you in uniform?" Tony asked suddenly, scrutinising Alec's black suit and dark blue tie.

"Tony!" Rose scolded her younger brother. "Don't be rude!"

Tony looked guilty, and muttered out a quiet 'sorry!'

"It's quite alright," Alec told Rose seriously, before turning to Tony. "I don't wear uniform because I'm a Detective Inspector. Used to wear a uniform, though. But I'm not at work at the moment, I've been poorly."

Quite why he was telling a small child that, Alec didn't know. He avoided talking about his arrhythmia, and consequent operation to have a pacemaker fitted even with Ellie, so why was he telling a little boy he'd only just met? Mentally shaking himself, he turned back to Rose, who'd been watching the conversation in silent amusement.

"Well, I'd, uh, I'd better be off," Alec told her awkwardly. "Stuff to do, people to see…"

He trailed off, thankful when Rose nodded in understanding.

"Yeah, well, I've gotta go see if we can enrol him at the local school," Rose responded, before frowning to herself. "Probably should've done that before actually, but there we go…"

Alec nodded, and bade them a second farewell before skirting round them and continuing down the road. He frowned to himself as he walked, trying to work out just why he'd spent so long standing around chatting to the girl… To Rose. He didn't do that, not with the residents of Broadchurch. He'd perhaps give a nod of greeting, or a quick hello if it was Olly, or the vicar, or Becca. But other than that the only person he really spoke to outside of work- only person he really got on with outside of work- was Ellie. Ellie Carter, formerly Ellie Miller until her husband had committed murder, was the only one who had the patience- or, perhaps, the impatience- to deal with all Alec's crap. If he was whinging, or being an idiot, Ellie would tell him. She was understanding about his heart condition, sympathetic about his problems with his daughter, but she wouldn't put up with any of his- as she'd put it- grumpy shtick. As Alec continued along the High Street on his way home, he tried to tell himself that he'd only been concerned about the boy's safety- as both a Police officer and a father- and that he most certainly did not wish to begin making friends with the new town outsider, even if he knew what it felt like. No. No, he didn't want that. He didn't want to be friends with the pretty young blonde and her kid brother. That was most certainly not what he wanted. So why had he stopped and talked to her for so long?

**~StormWolf10~**

It was only when Alec arrived home that he realised where Rose had said she and her brother were renting a house; Ashbrook Road. Ashbrook Road was where Alec lived, as well as Ellie. Frowning, Alec looked down the road, his front door key in hand as he tried to figure out just where Rose lived. She must live up the other end of the road, he decided, in one of the smaller, two-up two-down houses. All the houses in the road were detached, and were in varying states of disrepair, as they were some of the older houses in Broadchurch. All faded bricks and cracked guttering, Alec was sure it had been a pleasant street when the houses had first been built, and where it was situated on the hill, it overlooked the rest of Broadchurch. Still, the road had several twists and turns in it as it snaked over the hill, and Alec supposed Rose's house might not be visible from his. The houses were somewhat spread out, being detached, and Alec liked that. He was on the end as well, with only Ellie's house to the right, before the rest of the houses continued up and over the hill. He hadn't wanted to buy the house. Had protested quite a lot actually, but the community had welcomed him in, after the Danny Latimer case. After Joe had been caught, everyone felt they owed it to him. Alec really wished they hadn't felt that way, particularly with so many accusing looks being directed at poor Ellie. He'd been all packed up and ready to leave, ready to get away from the sand and the sea and the never-ending sky. But then Ellie had asked him to stay. Had told him that she was staying in Broadchurch, with the boys. Just for a while, see how it went. That had been three months ago, and Alec had reluctantly given in and bought a house. It was a nice house, actually, but still he had his doubts about remaining in Broadchurch. Ellie had sold up, bought the house next door, and Alec wasn't sure about it, but at least it meant he wouldn't have nosy neighbours. Just noisy neighbours, when Fred decided he didn't want to sleep.

Having finally given up trying to work out just where Rose and Tony Tyler lived- Alec realised he'd been expecting some big, flashing neon sign pointing to the house, or something- he let himself into his house, rubbing his chest. He felt tired too, bone-weary tired, like he could fall asleep on his feet had they not been aching so much. Maybe he shouldn't have walked so far so soon, but at least he knew not to make the mistake again; he'd had his pacemaker fitted a little over two weeks ago, had put the operation off until after Joe's trial, so he could be more of a help than a hindrance to Ellie; he'd have done no good if Ellie had had Tom sobbing on one shoulder about his Dad and Alec sobbing on the other over the pain in his chest from the op. Not that Alec Hardy cried. With a sigh, Alec slipped his shoes off and collapsed onto the sofa. He wasn't allowed back at work, no matter how much he argued that daytime TV was absolutely rubbish. Apparently he was a health risk, or something. Alec didn't believe that for a second; he felt much better than he'd done before the op, and he'd been leading a murder investigation at the same time. And with that last thought, Alec Hardy fell asleep.

**~StormWolf10~**

"Come on then, monkey," Rose sighed as she let go of Tony's hand to unlock the front door of their rented house, "let's see what we can have for dinner."

Tony slipped into the house almost as soon as the gap between the door and the doorframe was wide enough, and Rose followed him inside.

"Shoes off, please," she reminded the boy as he began heading straight for the kitchen.

They'd stopped out longer than they'd planned to, and she knew that Tony was probably rather hungry, but if she let him wear his shoes into the living room, she'd be scrubbing mud out of the carpet for a week. Obediently, Tony dropped to his bum on the hallway floor, yanking off his trainers without bothering to undo the Velcro. He still hadn't quite mastered tying shoe laces, but Rose noted her brother's trainers were beginning to look a little worse for wear. Maybe she should try teaching him to tie laces again… She sighed then, causing little Tony to frown up at her in confusion. Yet another thing to add to the list, Rose realised. She was beginning to understand what her Mum and Dad had meant when she'd accused them of never having to do anything and how being a parent must be easy- admittedly, at the time, she'd been seventeen, an only child, and had gotten annoyed about how her parents had scolded her for having a pregnancy scare. It was then that Rose realised her little brother was still staring up at her with wide eyes, and she forced a smile.

"Shall we go see what we've got in the freezer for tea?"

Tony nodded happily, taking Rose's hand to tug her towards the kitchen. Their rented home was modest, just the sitting room and a small kitchen diner downstairs, along with a bathroom and two bedrooms upstairs. That, however, was more than big enough for the two of them, particularly as they had grown up in a South London council flat. Rose reached the freezer and knelt down in front of it, opening the door and pulling open the drawers. She wrinkled her nose.

"Looks like we'll need to go shopping tomorrow, sweetheart," she told her brother with a forced smile. "Not much in here."

Tony nodded solemnly, and Rose tried her best not to sigh. She wasn't sure how they were going to afford it, she really didn't. They'd had to get out of London, yes, but Rose was regretting moving to such an expensive little seaside town. She'd moved to be closer to one of her Granddad's old war buddies and his family, who lived in a small and expensive village nearby. Rose had thought that Broadchurch would be good, that it would be nice for Tony to live near the sea, that the money they'd been left by their Dad would pay for rent for a few months and by then she'd have a job. She'd forgotten to take into account the bills and the food and the cost of moving all their second-hand furniture from a fourth-floor south London council flat to a small house in Dorset. They were running out of money rapidly, and she still had to get Tony's new uniform, and new trainers… She'd been needing a new pair of trainers too, but she supposed she could wait a little longer. Digging around in the freezer, Rose finally came across two pieces of fish, and half a bag of frozen chips. She sighed.

"Fish and chips again then, eh, buddy?" she told her brother, straightening up and closing the freezer.

They'd had fish and chips for the past three nights. They'd been in Broadchurch less than a week, probably six days, and by the time Rose had paid the moving men, she hadn't been left with much money for shopping, so hadn't been able to buy much. She'd tried to be sensible, divided the money into two categories; rent, and spending. The rent pile had been huge, scarily so, and the spending pile was already dwindling. Still, Rose couldn't let on to Tony, so she plastered on a fake grin as she poured chips onto a baking tray, along with the fish, and set it all in the oven.

"Now then, you," Rose told her brother, leading him over to the small dining table that was wedged in the corner of the kitchen. "You and I need to have a talk."

Tony swallowed and nodded, and clambered onto a chair.

"You shouldn't have run off earlier, sweetheart," Rose told her brother, imploring him to understand. "You can't run off like that, Tony, you'll get yourself hurt. You're a very lucky boy that that Policeman got to you before that bus did. You know not to play on roads, Daddy taught you that was dangerous. This isn't like the Estate, there are cars and buses and taxis around, and you could get hurt. Do you understand?"

Tony nodded, pouting. Rose arched an eyebrow, and the little boy huffed.

"Yes, Rose."

Rose nodded her head, satisfied.

"Good boy," Rose told him, reaching over to ruffle his blonde hair. "Next time we go out, I want you to not let go of my hand, yeah? We don't want you getting hurt."

"Like Daddy?" Tony asked.

Rose froze. How was she meant to respond to that? Realising that Tony was still expecting an answer, Rose nodded, wide-eyed. Her chest suddenly felt tight, and she willed herself not to cry as she responded.

"Yeah."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Wow! Didn't think this story would be that popular… Second chapter for you!**

"This is ridiculous!"

"Alec, for the last time, we cannot have you at work two weeks after major heart surgery!" Elaine sighed for the umpteenth time.

"You're being irrational," Alec responded. "I feel absolutely fine."

"It's not happening, Alec. Go home and rest!" Elaine told him, returning her attention to the paperwork on the desk in front of her.

Alec didn't budge. He remained in front of her desk.

"Give me work."

Elaine ignored him.

"Fine," he muttered bitterly, before raising his voice. "I'll get Carter to give me work."

"Ellie's not here," Elaine responded calmly, not looking up. "She went out for lunch."

"I'll wait, then," Alec replied calmly.

And then he spun on his heels and made his way to his own office.

**~StormWolf10~**

It was almost fifteen minutes later that Ellie came back in, and almost immediately Alec was on his feet. Ellie may not like him being at work, but she'd at least sympathise and hopefully give him some stuff to do at home. Plus, she was probably getting sick of him stomping around his house; she'd come over the night before to tell him that she could hear him from her house, although Alec suspected that was an exaggeration and she'd just seen him through the window, pacing up and down and muttering to himself. Still, she'd hopefully be able to twist Elaine's arm… Alec stopped dead as he saw Ellie, in her ridiculously bright orange coat, cradling a rain-drenched kid to her. The kid wasn't Fred, Alec could tell that instantly, the child was too big, and had blonde hair…

"What the hell are you doing here?" Ellie demanded as soon as she saw Alec.

Alec opened his mouth to complain about crappy daytime telly, but before he could form the words, Ellie was transferring the child into his arms.

"Never mind, just hold him a moment, yeah? Gotta see if we've got a contact number for his family, he got himself lost."

And then Ellie was at a computer, not caring that poor SOCO Brian had been working on it just moments before she'd shoved him aside. Blinking, Alec looked down at the child in his arms.

"It's you," Alec realised accusingly.

Tony Tyler sniffled in response, and frowned.

"You're the Policeman!"

Ellie blinked, and turned to look at Alec and Tony.

"You know him?" Ellie asked, brow furrowing in confusion.

Alec nodded.

"Met him yesterday," Alec said distractedly, before turning his attention back to Tony. "How'd you get here? I thought you'd have been told not to wander off after yesterday."

Tony's eyes filled with tears again, and Alec felt a little guilty. The kid had only just moved there, had probably just taken a wrong turning, or something. Even so, he wasn't old enough to be out on his own.

"I was playin' out the front," Tony sniffed, clinging to Alec's suit, "an' I wanted to go exploring…"

"So you wandered off," Alec concluded.

The little boy responded by biting his lip.

"Alright, sweetheart, just tell me where you live, and we'll get hold of your Mummy or Daddy," Ellie chipped in calmly, having found nothing conclusive on the contact list for the Broadchurch residents.

"You can't," Tony responded, wiping his nose on the back of his hand. Alec grimaced. "I don't have a Mummy or Daddy."

"He lives with his older sister," Alec added, carefully depositing Tony on the floor and rubbing his chest. "They just moved into a house on Ashbrook Road."

"Do you know what number, Tony?" Ellie asked.

Tony shook his head.

"I know what it looks like though," he told them, staring up at the two officers. "'S got a blue door."

Ellie's brow furrowed.

"I think I know the house you mean," she said after a few minutes. "Alec, get your coat."

"I came in to do _work_, Carter, not to go round taking home stray kids," he responded coolly.

"And I came in to do work, Alec, not to take home stray Detective Inspectors, but we can't all get our own way!" Ellie responded quickly, grabbing a few tissues from a box on a desk and wiping Tony's nose for him.

Alec scowled.

**~StormWolf10~**

Alec was still scowling when Ellie pulled up to number 110 Ashbrook Road.

"Is this it?" Elle asked the little boy in the back seat, smiling as the boy nodded, wide-eyed.

Just as Tony had told them, the house had a blue door, and just as Alec had realised, the house was hidden from view of his and Ellie's houses by a twist in the road. There was a marked Police car outside, and Ellie hurried to help Tony from the car, leading him by the hand to the front door. Alec followed somewhat more slowly, already working up to lecturing Rose on not letting her kid brother play in the street without supervision. Ellie knocked on the door, and it was flung open less than ten seconds later by a teary-eyed Rose.

"Tony!"

Almost immediately, Tony was in Rose's arms, crying into her shoulder as he apologised over and over again. When Rose had finally settled enough, Ellie showed the young woman her Police badge.

"Detective Sergeant Ellie Carter," she explained with a small smile. "May we come in?"

Rose nodded, stepping back and letting them into the house.

"Sorry about the mess," she told them quietly, offering Ellie a weak smile. "Still haven't found a place for everything."

Ellie just smiled in understanding, ignoring the packing boxes in the hallway as she made her way into the living room. She was slightly shocked to see PC Bob Daniels sat there on the sofa.

"I was called," Bob said at Ellie's questioning look.

"I, uh, called the Police when I noticed Tony was missing," Rose explained a little awkwardly, Tony on her hip.

Ellie nodded.

"You did the right thing," she assured the younger woman. "He's a bit soggy from the rain, but other than that he's fine."

"You really shouldn't leave him outside unsupervised," Alec piped up suddenly, expression neutral as he stood in front of the window. "He's lucky it was Ellie who found him."

"I know, I only came inside to make a cup of tea," Rose responded, wide-eyed. "Went back outside and he'd gone!"

"He went exploring," Ellie explained. "Found him at the bottom of the hill. It was near the Police station, and he was crying so much that I couldn't even get his name out of him."

Rose bit her lip, her hand going to Tony's head as he burrowed his face in her neck.

"We grew up on a council estate, see," Rose began quietly, not meeting anyone's eyes. "He's used to playing in the courtyard outside. I'd sit outside with him while I wasn't at work, or Dad would watch him from the walkway, and he'd be fine. Him and his mates, kicking a football about or whatever. He… I suppose I didn't explain well enough that it's not like the estate, and that it's really easy to get lost."

Rose herself was looking a little lost at the whole situation, and Ellie moved over to the younger woman quickly.

"How about I pop the kettle on, yeah?" Bob suggested with a small smile. "Bet you could do with a cuppa."

Rose smiled weakly and nodded.

"Yeah. Make yourself one too, And DI Hardy and DS Carter," Rose responded quietly.

Bob excused himself from the room, and headed to the kitchen. Rose gestured at the sofas, and Ellie took a seat, although Alec remained standing. He looked around the room. It was nicely decorated, although he suspected that that had been done by the owners, or the people who rented the house before, rather than Rose. The house seemed smaller than the one he owned, and the front room felt cramped, with two faded, battered sofas up against two of the walls and numerous toys scattered across the carpeted floor. The TV was a flat screen, but evidently at least a few years old. There were numerous photo frames on the wall too, with photos of a much younger Rose, from when she was even younger than Tony was, right up to more recent photos of her and Tony together. There were photos of a couple too, a blonde man and woman, who Alec assumed were their parents. His brow furrowed slightly when he noticed there were photos of a teenage Rose with both parents, but in all the photos of Tony, the woman- their mother- appeared to be missing. Maybe he wasn't the only one in Broadchurch with a somewhat dysfunctional family.

"Where are your parents?" Alec asked suddenly, turning to look at Rose.

He wasn't entirely sure how he'd overlooked the question the previous day, although he had a sneaking suspicion it had been because he hadn't wanted to get involved.

"Alec!" Ellie scolded, turning to glare at him.

Alec ignored her, and kept his eyes on Rose. She was biting her lip, refusing to meet his gaze, and, after what felt like an eternity, she finally responded.

"They're, uh, they're dead."

Alec blinked. She'd mentioned her Dad earlier, mentioned they'd grown up on a council estate, but Alec had assumed that he'd up and left, or something.

"I… I'm sorry."

Rose gave him a weak smile, and sat down on the sofa Ellie wasn't occupying.

"'S alright," she responded.

"No, it's not," Ellie broke in gently. "It must be tough."

Rose shrugged, finally shifting Tony to sit more on her lap without his head buried in her neck. Still, he clung to her.

"Mum died years ago," Rose responded quietly. "It's just… All a bit sudden. Losing Dad, I mean."

"And suddenly having to fill his shoes," Ellie realised, gaze on Tony. "Must be odd, suddenly finding yourself raising your little brother."

Rose gave a small smile.

"'S why we moved," she admitted. "Fresh start. Not made a very good job of it though, have I? Been here less than a week and he's almost been run over and I've lost him."

"That's just kids at that age," Ellie assured Rose with a reassuring smile. "Believe me; I've got two kids myself. The oldest is at senior school now, but the amount of times he'd go walkabouts when we were shopping when he was Tony's age!"

"Why Broadchurch?"

Ellie sighed loudly, turning to glare at Alec.

"Will you just sit down and shut up!" she told him, annoyance tingeing her tone.

Alec glared, and sank onto the edge of the sofa Ellie already occupied.

"It's, uh, near friends of the family," Rose explained quietly. Her hand had gone to Tony's hair, stroking it as the little boy curled into her side. He seemed tired, and Alec figured all the excitement of the day was catching up with the five year old. "Our Granddad, our Mum's Dad, he stayed in touch with one of his war buddies, Wilfred Mott. I used to visit him with my Granddad, when he was still alive. He passed away when I was ten, and I haven't seen Wilf much since then, but we stayed in touch. His granddaughter, Donna, is a few years older than me, and they live in a nearby village. Couldn't afford the houses there, even the rental ones, so Broadchurch it was."

"So you're here on your own?" Ellie asked in concern.

Rose nodded.

"Yeah, I mean, Wilf and Donna are nearby, but we don't know anyone in Broadchurch. All my friends stayed in London."

There was a pause, during which Bob returned with four cups of tea on a tray, and a little bowl of sugar.

"Wasn't sure how you took your tea," Bob told Rose uncertainly as she took her tea. "I put milk in, but no sugar."

"That's fine," Rose responded quietly as she took the mug.

The other cups were taken off the tray, which was then settled on a little table in the corner of the room, which Alec presumed was a small table for Tony. Silence filled the room, as Tony seemed to have dozed off on the sofa, and all that could be heard was the slight slurp as the four adults sipped at their tea.

"I… I hope this wasn't too much bother," Rose said after a few moments, brow furrowing as she looked at the three Police officers that occupied her sitting room.

"It was no bother," Ellie cut in before Alec had the chance, "just so long as Tony's alright."

Rose glanced down at her little brother, smiling slightly.

"He's not gonna sleep tonight if I don't wake him soon," she murmured, more to herself than the officers.

Just then, Bob's phone chirped, and he pulled it from his pocket.

"Ah," he murmured, glancing up at the other occupants of the room, "looks like I might be needed back at the station."

Rose nodded in understanding.

"We'll be fine, Bob," Ellie told him with a small smile. "We won't be much longer, anyway. I'll drop Alec off home and then head back too."

**~StormWolf10~**

When Ellie and Alec did eventually leave, Ellie left with the assurance that Rose knew she had at least one friend in Broadchurch (well, and Alec, but the grumpy git hadn't had much to say to her).

"You might want to try one of the cafés or shops for a job," Ellie suggested as Rose saw them out. "I'm sure someone will hire you."

Rose had mentioned earlier that she had to get a job, but Alec had zoned out of the conversation not long after the two women had begun exchanging phone numbers. He had bid Rose a tense goodbye, and was heading to Ellie's car when he heard the woman stop and begin talking to Rose again.

"If you want, we can meet up one night," Ellie said to Rose, and Alec could virtually hear the grin in her voice. "We can do it at mine; you could bring Tony with you. I'm sure Tom will have some video games for them to play, or something. Then me, you and Alec can chat. A proper welcome to Broadchurch!"

"Carter-" Alec began warningly, making his way back over to her.

But before he could continue, Rose was nodding, smiling.

"Yeah, that'll be good," she said, sounding relieved. "Pretty sure everyone here thinks I was some sort of single, teen Mum or something… Not that I mind, but some of the looks I get…"

She trailed off, biting her lip. Alec blinked, sniffed, and looked away.

"It's settled then," Ellie said with a grin. "I'll phone you later, decide a night."

And then, Ellie was dragging a protesting Alec to the car.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: In which Rose reveals all, Ellie's past is discovered and Alec talks to Rose…**

They decided on Saturday night, to meet up at Ellie's. Well, Rose and Ellie decided. Alec just agreed. He didn't really want to go, but he knew that Ellie knew he had nothing better to do, and he still wasn't allowed back at work. And so, he arrived at just before six, with some sweets for Tom and Tony to share, as well as a packet of milky buttons for Fred.

"Carter," Alec greeted as Ellie opened the door.

"Hiya, Alec," Ellie responded, stepping back to let him in. "Have you eaten? I've set up a buffet-style thing in the kitchen."

Alec hummed distractedly, nodding slightly. Ellie just rolled her eyes and pried his suit jacket off him, to Alec's protesting "Oi!"

"Oh, shut it," Ellie responded, brow furrowing slightly. "You do not need your jacket in my house, it's perfectly warm. You can lose the tie, too."

Alec scowled, but a few moments later, his tie was slipping from around his neck and was being stuffed into his jacket pocket, which was reluctantly pulled from his body and hung up by the door.

"This had better be worth my time, Carter," Alec sighed as he handed her the bag of sweets.

"Oh, for god's sake, Alec," Ellie sighed. "This is to help Rose settle in! You know what it's like to be the outsider here in Broadchurch, you know what a close-knit community it is, and you know what it feels like to be outside of that! Just… Be nice, yeah?"

"I'm always nice," Alec grumbled under his breath.

He saw Ellie arch her eyebrow, and as there was a knock on the door, Alec wandered into the front room as Ellie headed to answer it.

"You alright, Tom?" Alec asked as he entered the front room.

Tom nodded, glancing over and smiling before returning his attention to the video game he was playing. Fred was on the floor, building blocks scattered around him, but he seemed more interested in Tom's video game. Alec could hear talking in the hallway, and moments later, Ellie was showing Rose and Tony into the front room.

"Tom," Ellie spoke up, calmly, "this is Tony Tyler. He's just moved down the road with his sister. Think you can find a two-player game to play with him?"

Tom nodded, and began saving the game he'd been playing.

"Nothing with guns, though," Ellie added quickly.

Tom nodded again, a little more disheartened than before, and began looking through his games. As he selected one and slipped it in the console, Tony remained stood beside Rose.

"Go on then, Tony," Rose told her little brother, nudging him towards Tom. "I'm sure Tom will help you if you get stuck."

Tony looked sceptical, but made his way over to Tom anyway. Alec watched, brow slightly furrowed. It looked like the little boy had been crying, but Rose seemed happy enough. Perhaps an argument earlier, Alec reasoned.

"How about we go through to the kitchen?" Ellie suggested suddenly, watching as Tom connected up another controller and began talking through the controls with Tony. "I'm sure the kids will be ok."

Rose nodded, smiling weakly, and Alec got to his feet.

"There's some food out in the kitchen if you get hungry, boys," Ellie told Tom and Tony. "Just help yourselves. And come and get me if Fred gets fussy."

"Yeah, Mum," Tom replied, already focused on starting up the game- a racing game, by the looks of things.

With one final glance at her brother, Rose followed Ellie from the room and to the kitchen.

**~StormWolf10~**

"Any luck finding a job yet?" Ellie asked as she set a mug of tea in front of Rose.

The younger woman shook her head. It had been two days since she had first met Ellie, when Tony had gone adventuring, but she was still unemployed.

"No, I went in a few places yesterday, but none of them were hiring," Rose replied with a sigh. "And I was too busy to go anywhere else; I had to buy Tony's new uniform and shoes."

"He got into the Primary school alright then?" Ellie asked.

Rose nodded.

"Yeah, he starts Monday. Think he's a little nervous."

"Understandable," Ellie responded. "Still, it'll do him good. He'll be able to make more friends."

"Yeah, if we're around long enough for him to keep them," Rose muttered under her breath.

Alec, who'd remained stubbornly silent until that point, sat bolt upright.

"What do you mean?" he asked in confusion.

"The money our Dad left us," Rose explained quietly, "well, it wasn't much. Like I said the other day, we lived in a council flat. Dad had a business, Vitex, he called it. Energy drinks, but they didn't sell very well. That's where he was heading. When he…" Rose trailed off, the end of the sentence hanging in the air between them. And then, Rose was speaking again. "Anyway, the business didn't make much, and Dad's insurance wasn't very good. We got a bit of money out of it, a couple of thousand pounds, but it doesn't go far, does it? Most of it's gone on rent, and the rest on food, and stuff for Tony. He keeps growing out of his clothes far too quickly; I swear it's not natural… But I don't know how long I'll be able to pay rent on the house if I don't get a job soon."

Ellie blinked, her heart going out to the young woman sat at her dining table. She was young, was barely even out of her teens, and already she had a huge responsibility.

"What about those friends of yours that you mentioned?" Alec asked, almost accusingly. "Surely they can lend you some money?"

Rose sighed.

"They could," she admitted slowly. "But I'm not sure I want them to. I mean, I haven't seen them for years. We stayed in touch, yeah, but only phone calls and letters and stuff. Wilf's retired, and from what I hear, Donna could only get a job as a temp, so money's tight for her too."

"But you've got your little brother to look after," Alec continued, pressing. He ignored the warning glare Ellie was giving him as she reclaimed her seat beside Rose. "You have more responsibility."

"Yeah, but I'm sure we'll be fine," Rose shrugged. "We never had much money, not when I was little, and certainly not after Tony was born. We'll get by."

"I'm guessing your Mum was the one with a steady job, then?" Alec asked.

Rose blinked and looked at the DI.

"Excuse me?" she asked, voice quiet and tinged with confusion.

"After she left," Alec stated, "your Dad wasn't able to find a steady job, what with having a baby in the house too."

"Alec," Ellie broke in, but the Detective Inspector ignored her.

"Tony couldn't have been very old when she left, though," he said. "And if you were in college- were you in college?"

Rose shook her head, wide-eyed. Ellie could see that the line of conversation was upsetting the young woman.

"Alec," Ellie tried again.

"You said the other day that your parents were both dead, I'm guessing your Mum died sometime after your father and she separated?"

"They didn't separate."

Alec blinked.

"But the photos in your front room," he responded with a frown. "She wasn't in any of the ones with you and Tony, and the ones your Dad was in looked like he'd taken it holding the camera at arms' length."

Rose blinked, tears welling in her eyes, and she looked away.

"Oh, for god's sake, Alec!" Ellie hissed, leaning across the table and slapping Alec on the arm. "What did I say, hmm? I told you to be nice! So quit being a Detective for once! And you shouldn't have snooped around when we'd taken Tony home!"

"I didn't snoop," Alec sniffed, although he looked a little guilty. "The photos were on display."

There was a pause, tension thick in the air.

"I'm sorry, Rose," Alec said eventually with a sigh. "Don't know when to keep my mouth shut sometimes."

He saw the corners of Rose's lips twitch, curving into an almost-smile, before dropping again. She took a deep breath and turned to look at Alec again.

"When Mum died… She, uh, she died an hour after Tony was born," Rose explained quietly, refusing to meet Alec's or Ellie's gazes. "She passed out before he was born, he was far enough out that they just used forceps…" Rose turned her head away again as more tears welled in her eyes, and Ellie reached for the girl's hand instinctively. "They said she'd be alright! Said she'd wake up, that she wouldn't be out for more than an hour or two! But…"

"She didn't," Alec concluded quietly.

Rose shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks, and after a few moments, Ellie pulled her into a hug.

"It was a haemorrhage," Rose said quietly after a moment. "They didn't detect it in time and she bled to death. Never even got to hold Tony." She sniffed, and then continued. "Dad spent an hour or so with her, before… Before they took her away, but I refused to see her. Didn't want to. Didn't want to see her like that. We got to take Tony home, that day, but it felt wrong. Dad wouldn't even sleep in his room, he stayed in the sitting room. Didn't sleep, just… Sat there. I had Tony in with me for a few nights, in the hope that Dad would get some sleep if he knew I'd be there to check on Tony, but it didn't work."

"How old were you?" Alec asked, voice unnaturally soft.

"Eighteen," Rose admitted, sniffing again and wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

Ellie's brow furrowed, and she squeezed Rose's hand in reassurance. She'd sort of figured that Rose's story would be an emotional one, but she hadn't realised just how tough Rose's short life had been. She was only twenty-three, Ellie realised, and yet she was suddenly the sole provider for her and her baby brother, had to raise and care for him, when she hadn't finished raising herself.

"An' then," Rose continued suddenly, shocking both Alec and Ellie, "just as things were beginning to get better again, Dad... He was hit by a car. A month ago."

Ellie's hand went to her mouth, and Alec's eyes shut. God knows what must have gone through Rose's head the other day when he managed to stop Tony being hit by that bus.

"I'm so sorry!" Ellie gasped out, hand going to Rose's shoulder to pull her closer.

Rose, however, shrugged.

"Doesn't matter now. But 's why we had to move out of London. Too dangerous, especially for Tony," Rose replied. "And besides, haven't got much right to complain when you're raising two kids on your own."

Ellie tensed at that, and Rose immediately realised she'd said the wrong thing. However, before she could apologise, Tony came running into the room, grinning excitedly.

"Rose! Rose! I beat Tom!"

Tom himself came trailing in after the five year old, Fred toddling alongside his older brother.

"Is that right?" Rose asked, plastering on a smile as she lifted her little brother onto her lap. Tony nodded eagerly, but then his grin faltered, drooping down to a frown.

"Have you been cryin'?" Tony asked his sister uncertainly.

Rose blinked, and rubbed at her eyes with the back of a hand.

"A little," she admitted after a few moments. "I'm alright now, though."

Tony looked sceptical though- at least Alec thought the boy looked sceptical, it was hard to tell with a five year old- and merely blinked at his sister.

"Can I have some food?"

Ellie chuckled, Rose smirked and even Alec cracked a small smile.

"There's food over there," Ellie told the boy, gesturing towards the kitchen island. "Help yourself."

Tony nodded happily and slipped off of Rose's lap, making his way over to where the food was set out. Tom followed, after Ellie relieved him of Fred.

"I… I'm sorry about just now," Rose told Ellie quietly, nervous. "If I spoke out of term."

Ellie, however, waved her off.

"Don't worry about it," Ellie replied quietly. "You weren't to know. Although, I'm surprised you didn't know."

Rose's brow furrowed slightly at that, and she looked from Alec to Ellie and back again. And then her eyes widened.

**~StormWolf10~**

The rest of the evening was strained, with Rose having realised just who she was talking to. The last few months were so muddled in her head, what with losing her job, and looking after Tony, and losing their Dad. But by the time she was leaving, she was kicking herself for not putting two and two together; she'd seen it on the News, of course she had. There'd been all that stuff about a little boy being murdered and found on Broadchurch beach. Donna and Wilf had assured her that the town was lovely, that it had been a terrible, terrible thing that had never happened before. It had only been after she'd recalled the murder investigation that Rose had realised she'd recognised Alec Hardy; he'd been the Detective Inspector on the case, and Ellie Carter- then Ellie Miller- had been the Detective Sergeant on the case. It had been her husband who had committed the murder. And from that point on, Rose had been bordering on desperate to get Tony out of the house. She felt terrible for it, she really did, because Ellie seemed lovely, and her son Tom had been so polite and friendly with Tony. But Rose simply couldn't let Tony stay in that house. Ellie had tried to explain, and Rose had politely listened, but she still didn't want Tony being there. Ellie had explained how she'd had nothing to do with what her husband had done, how she had moved to a new house with the boys for a fresh start. Alec had backed her up vehemently, talking the most he had the entire evening just to get the point across that Ellie Carter was innocent. His eyes had bore into Rose's, dark and angry as he begged for her to understand.

"I'll, uh, see you around, yeah?" Rose told Ellie as she saw them out.

Ellie nodded, smiling as Rose smiled back. But both smiles were strained, and poor Tony watched the two women in confusion, unable to understand just why he'd been dragged out of the house halfway through a racing game with his new friend Tom. Just then, Alec grabbed his jacket, squeezing past Ellie and out the door.

"I'll walk you home," Alec told Rose gruffly, leaving no room for argument. He turned to Ellie. "See you later, Carter."

Ellie nodded, disappearing back inside and shutting the door behind her. Rose began leading Tony off the drive and along the pavement, trying to ignore both Alec and the persistent February drizzle. She knew the Scotsman was following them in silence, and Rose hoped he'd get the message and just go home. Deep down, Rose truly believed Ellie had had nothing to do with the murder of that little boy, she was too sweet, too caring…. But Rose didn't really know her, did she? She'd met Ellie Carter a grand total of two times, she didn't know what the woman was like behind closed doors…

"She had nothing to do with it."

Rose blinked, and stopped walking. Tony, who had been holding her hand, ground to a halt too, confused as he stared up at her from beneath the hood of his coat.

"Sorry?" Rose asked.

"Ellie Carter had nothing to do with the death of Daniel Latimer," Alec responded coolly.

"I never said she did," Rose replied, beginning to tug Tony along the pavement again.

"She is a brilliant DS and an even better Mother, and that's what matters," Alec continued, falling into step beside Rose, Tony between them.

"I'm sure she is, but…" Rose trailed off, sighing and glancing over at Alec. In the dark of the February evening, Alec looked quite threatening and dangerous in his black suit, his eyes dark as he stared her down. "Look, I didn't really follow the case on the News, not really. Things weren't going well at work, and then I got sacked four months ago. Which, actually, was lucky, because I worked at Henricks in London, and it got burnt down a month later in a fire. But anyway, I then spent two months helping Dad with Tony, he was working all hours trying to get companies to buy into Vitex… And then he died. So I knew of the case, of course I did, the whole country knew of the case. But all I really knew was who they arrested for it."

Alec stared at her, remaining silent as they made their way round a bend in the road.

" I… I'm sure Ellie had nothing to do with it, she seems a lovely woman, but… But I have Tony to think of, and for now… Maybe it's best if I don't go around there," Rose concluded quietly.

Alec sniffed.

"Rose," Alec began, using her name for the first time since they had met several days ago, "I know you feel that you have to protect Tony, and you do, but not from Ellie. Ellie Carter is perhaps the most friendly person in this town, and if you're going to make friends, she is the best person to start with."

Rose blinked up at the Detective Inspector.

"I… I don't want to come across as horrible, I really don't, but… It's… It's only just clicked in my head. Her _husband_ killed a _child_!"

At that, Tony looked up in alarm, and Rose sighed, lifting the boy into her arms.

"Her husband is in prison. I made sure of that myself," Alec responded calmly.

By then, they'd reached Rose's house.

"So are you and Ellie…" Rose trailed off. "Is that why you're so protective of her?"

Alec's brow furrowed.

"Ellie and I are friends," he replied. "Nothing going on between us, and nothing will ever go on between us. Why?"

"Just asking," Rose shrugged.

She turned away from Alec, beginning to unlock the front door.

"I'll be off now, then," Alec piped up from behind her.

Rose nodded, casting a quick smile over her shoulder.

"Yeah, see you later," Rose responded as Tony waved happily.

Alec waved back at the boy and turned to begin walking down the road. However, he stopped himself, spinning back round just as Rose was entering the house.

"Just… Promise me one thing, Rose," he spoke up carefully.

Rose blinked, turning to look at the man with a frown on her face.

"Don't write Ellie off just yet. She's a good woman. Just… Give her a chance."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Because I'm feeling generous. Another chapter :)**

"Go on, then," Rose told Tony with a reassuring smile, nudging him towards the school door. "I'll be back at three to pick you up."

But Tony didn't move. Instead, he clung to Rose's legs, and for a few moments she contemplated just taking him home again, trying again tomorrow. But she had to look for a job, if they were going to remain in Broadchurch, and she wouldn't make a very good impression turning up with a five year old clinging to her. Some of the residents of the seaside town were suspicious enough of her already. With a sigh, Rose crouched down to look Tony in the eyes.

"Come on, monkey," she told him with a slight smile, using her nickname for him. "It's only for a few hours. And you'll get to make loads of new friends!"

"I don't wanna make new friends!" Tony retorted tearfully. "I wanna stay with you!"

Rose bit her lip, unsure how to respond to her little brother's sobbing. His whole life had been thrown up in the air a month previously, he was scared and confused and Rose was beginning to wonder whether moving him had all been a very bad idea. But, she reasoned, he couldn't cling to her side forever. And maybe making new friends would be just the thing he needed.

"Don't be silly, Tony, I'm sure there are lots of children here that are way more fun than I am!" she told him, plastering on a big, fake grin for the boy.

The boy sniffed and frowned, and Rose smoothed his blonde hair back from his forehead.

"Besides," she continued, "I've got to do boring grown-up stuff like look for jobs today. And that won't be fun."

Tony pouted, and Rose glanced up at the teacher in the doorway, who was beginning to get impatient.

"I'll see you later, yeah?" she told Tony, rather unceremoniously pushing him towards the door of the school.

She thrust his school bag and lunchbox into his hands and hurriedly left, refusing to look back as her brother tried to run after her, screaming for her. He would be fine, she decided. He'd already done a year and a bit of school in London, he was in Year One. He would settle into the routine, and come home time, he wouldn't want to leave his new friends. Or, at least, that was what Rose hoped.

**~StormWolf10~**

Almost an hour later, it was Rose herself who wanted to cry and scream. She'd spent the past hour walking round Broadchurch in an attempt to find a job. She'd had her CV typed up and ready to be handed in, but no one would take it. She'd tried clothes shops, cafes, newsagents', pet stores, nurseries and even the hardware shop even though she was rubbish at DIY. She was about to give up when she saw that, across the road, there was a tourist information office. It appeared to share a building with the town's newspaper, the Broadchurch Echo. Maybe they'd know of somewhere that was hiring. Taking a deep breath, Rose crossed the road and pushed the door open. Almost immediately, she was struck by how busy it was. There weren't very many members of the public, from what Rose could tell, but people were bustling around, exchanging information, printing and photocopying and typing.

"Hello, can I help you?"

Rose blinked, and stopped staring around to look at the woman who'd talked to her. The woman was a little taller than Rose, and probably around thirty or so. She had shoulder-length brown hair and a kind smile. She was rather prominently pregnant too, probably around eight months or so, and she looked familiar.

"Hi, I'm Rose Tyler, I recently began renting a house in the town, and I was wondering if you knew of any jobs that were going?" Rose asked nervously.

"Oh, right," the woman replied, blinking as her smile dropped slightly. "Well, we deal more with tourist activities, like walking routes, and camping sites and activities, that sort of thing, but if you speak to Maggie, over there, she might know of some places." The woman pointed at a woman who was probably in her fifties, near the back of the room, which seemed to be the area the Newspaper staff occupied. "She's the editor of the Broadchurch Echo, and they often have job advertisements in there."

Rose nodded, smiling gratefully.

"Thanks," Rose told her.

"No problem," the woman replied. "And if that fails, I heard there were a few jobs going at the local supermarket. Not much, stacking shelves and stuff, I think, but..." she trailed off, blinked, and thrust her hand out at Rose. "Sorry, head's all over the place," she told Rose with a small smile. "I'm Beth Latimer, by the way."

Rose shook her hand, even though her eyes widened slightly at the mention of the woman's name. This was her, Rose realised, the woman whose son had been murdered by Ellie Carter's husband. She quickly bade Beth goodbye and crossed the room.

"Hello? Maggie?" Rose asked the woman uncertainly.

"Yes," Maggie replied, brow furrowed. "Who are you?"

Rose opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, Maggie sighed and turned to a young man sat at a desk.

"Olly, you didn't start ringing up and emailing those other journalists again, did you? For god's sake, we've only just been able to get rid of that blasted Karen White!"

"Journalists?" the dark-haired young man- Olly- echoed, brow furrowing. "I haven't been emailing any journalists!"

"Actually," Rose interrupted awkwardly, "I just came in because I'm new to the town, and I'm looking for a job. I've not been able to find anything, and Beth Latimer said you might have a list of job advertisements?"

Maggie blinked, and after a few moments, nodded.

"Right, yes, yes, nice to meet you. I'm Maggie Radcliffe, editor of the Broadchurch Echo."

"I'm Rose Tyler," Rose responded, watching as Maggie began to dig through filing cabinets.

"Nice to meet you, Rose," Olly announced, suddenly on his feet and offering Rose his hand to shake. "My name's Olly Stevens, journalist for the Broadchurch Echo."

Rose shook his hand politely, giving Olly a nervous smile. However, as she returned her gaze to Maggie, who was writing something down on a pad of paper, she could feel that Olly's eyes remained on her. It lasted for the next minute or two, and by the time Maggie turned around again, Rose was feeling a little uncomfortable. She was sure Olly was a nice guy, but he was doing that thing, looking her up and down, checking her out. Usually Rose would feel flattered, but he'd had more than enough time to see what she looked like, and yet he continued staring. It was making her feel uneasy.

"Here you go," Maggie announced, handing Rose a piece of A4 paper with addresses jotted down on. "These are all the places that currently have advertisements with us for jobs. Sorry it's not much, but business hasn't been great here and, well..."

The woman trailed off, and Rose nodded in understanding.

"Thanks for this," she told Maggie with a genuine smile. "And I'm sorry if I interrupted anything."

"Oh, don't worry about that," Maggie responded with a small smile. "Nothing that can't be finished quickly."

Rose smiled again, and said goodbye to Maggie and Olly- who was still staring- before making her way out of the building. Once back on the High Street, Rose frowned, looking down at the piece of paper Maggie had given her.

"Ok," Rose muttered under her breath. "Number one, Broadchurch library."

**~StormWolf10~**

"Rose!"

Tony grinned upon seeing his older sister waiting for him in the playground, and he came barrelling towards her, coat trailing on the ground, school bag swinging in his hand and space rocket lunchbox gripped in his hand. Rose knelt down as Tony barrelled into her, cuddling him close. As she hugged him to her, Rose could hear the surrounding parents and grandparents muttering and murmuring to each other, pointed glances directed their way. She could hear phrases such as "single Mum", "the father's a layabout, no doubt", and "young mothers today, letting their children call them by their names!" Teeth grit, Rose straightened up and turned to face them.

"If you must know," Rose stated loudly, perplexing the gossiping parents, "he's my little brother. Our father recently died and he's been left in my care."

A small part of her felt extremely proud of the stunned, floundering expressions many of the parents now wore on their faces, but a much bigger part of her was suddenly aware of Tony clinging to her, burying her face in her side. Reaching down to grip her little brother's hand in hers, Rose quickly turned and led him from the playground, leaving the bewildered parents behind. They eventually stopped, past the school gates and a little way down the road. Rose crouched in front of him and took Tony's black and red coat from him, helping him tug it on.

"Tony?" Rose asked in concern, thumbing the tears that silently spilled down his cheeks. "What's the matter?"

Tony, however, shook his head and bit his lip. A nervous habit he shared with Rose, she knew that when Tony bit his lip it meant he was nervous or concerned about something.

"You've got to speak to me, sweetheart," Rose told him gently. "Else I can't fix what's wrong."

Tony stared down the street for a few moments, somehow looking years older than he was, and then he turned to look at her. Immediately, Rose felt her heart break at the sight of her five year old brother with tears in his eyes. She felt anger rise within her at the sight of it. She was ready to march back up to the school to talk with any teacher that would listen if another pupil had been bullying her brother, argue with any parent, any member of staff. She would use what little spare money they had to take him out, buy him whatever it was all the other kids had that he didn't, that had upset him so much. Did kids still obsess over those trainers with the lights in the soles, like when she was younger, Rose wondered. She wasn't sure. But if that's what it took to fix whatever had upset her little brother, Rose would do it. And then Tony spoke.

"I want Daddy."

It was Rose's turn to bite her lip then. There was nothing she could do to fix that, not ever. So she did the one thing she could think of. She gathered Tony in her arms, holding him close as he sobbed. They remained that way for several minutes, Tony wrapped in Rose's arms as she crouched in the middle of the pavement. Soon, though, as the crowds from the school came spilling out down the road, Rose lifted her brother into her arms and settled him on her hip. Carrying Tony with one hand and his school bag and lunch box with the other, she set off home.

**~StormWolf10~**

"Yeah, I got a job. Not much, though. Working in the local supermarket, stacking shelves and stuff. But it'll be money for me and Tony."

Rose had put Tony to bed no more than half an hour ago, and had decided to ring Donna. She was beginning to regret it as, as much as she got along with the woman, Donna loved to gossip. They'd only met briefly a couple of times when they were children, but the phone calls had assured that they still got along perfectly well. Only trouble was, Donna was insisting on coming to see their new rented home. There was a pause, and then Rose rolled her eyes as Donna tried to invite herself down yet again.

"Donna, I've only just managed to unpack everything! There's no decorating that needs to be done, everything's fine. Well, Tony's room needs doing, but-"

Rose rolled her eyes again as Donna interrupted.

"No, Donna, you don't have to… Well, yeah, it'll be good to see you and your Granddad, but… Well… Are you sure?" Rose sighed.

The rest of the phone call consisted of Rose humming in agreement and generally remaining silent while Donna nattered on about how her and Wilf would come down to help decorate Tony's room. Well, Wilf would take Tony to the park, or to the beach or something, and Donna and Rose would paint the room. Rose knew better than to argue with Donna Noble when she got an idea in her head, and so agreed for them to come down for the day. And with it agreed they would come down that Saturday, Rose ended the call and sighed, head falling back against the back of the tatty sofa. It had been a long day, what with Tony starting his new school, and Rose spending most of the day being turned down by employers until finally- finally- the supermarket took her on there and then. It seemed they were desperately under-staffed; they'd only given her a brief interview before offering her the job and asking her to start the following day. It was only a few hours a day, part-time, 10-2. But it was a start. From there, things had been looking up; Tony had seemed to have done well at school… But then it had fallen apart. She'd snapped in the school playground, yellin that their Dad was dead, and that had only upset Tony, caused him to cry. It had taken her ages to calm him afterwards, and even bribing him with sweets and ice cream hadn't worked. Rose couldn't blame him. She missed their Dad too, but at least she understood the situation better.

It was only two hours after she'd put Tony to bed that Rose headed to bed herself. It was little past half nine, but she had a headache, right behind her eyes, and all she wanted to do was sleep. However, she'd barely been in bed five minutes when her door creaked open. Blinking in the light that streamed in from the hallway, Rose could just about make out the silhouette of her brother. Moments later, he the light in the hallway flipped off and she could hear her brother padding across the carpet.

"Rose?" Tony asked, voice barely a whisper.

"Yeah, Tony?" Rose asked quietly, sitting up in bed and switching the lamp on.

"I can't sleep," the boy responded, wide-eyed.

Dressed in too-big light blue pyjama pants with stars on and a matching short-sleeved pyjama top with a space rocket and stars on, Tony looked even smaller than he was. His pyjamas had been bought a size bigger than needed, so they'd last him longer. He was only 3' 8", a little taller than average height for his age, and Rose had insisted on buying his clothes a little bigger than he needed in the vain attempt to save money in the long-run. With a yawn, Rose pushed the duvet back and patted the empty space of bed beside her.

"Get in," she told him tiredly. "But no kickin', ok? And no wriggling about. An' it's just for tonight."

Tony nodded, clambering into bed. Rose pulled the duvet back over the pair of them and switched the light off. Within minutes both Tylers were asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Shorter chapter, but enjoy!**

Rose grinned, pulling open the door almost as soon as she heard the knock on the other side.

"Hi, you two!" she greeted happily at the sight of the two people on the doorstep.

"Blimey, long time no see, Rose!" Donna responded, grinning at her. They hadn't seen each other for almost a decade, and neither of them had quite known what to expect.

Donna embraced Rose in a warm hug, as did her Granddad Wilf, before Rose invited them inside. Tony was hovering in the hallway, uncertain of these strangers, even when Donna and Wilf smiled reassuringly at him.

"And this must be Tony," Wilf piped up, smiling at the boy. "Your sister's told me a lot about you!"

Tony blinked, and Rose nudged him.

"Say hello," she told him quietly.

"Hi," Tony told them, voice quiet.

"I see he's just as shy as you were at that age," Wilf grinned at Rose.

They headed into the living room after that, and Rose made them all a cup of tea while Wilf and Donna chatted to Tony. The little boy didn't know it, but Donna and Rose would secretly redecorate his bedroom while Wilf took him out for a few hours, so it was even more important that Tony got on with the old man. When Rose returned to the living room with three mugs of tea and a glass of squash for Tony, she found that the man was talking to her brother about stars.

"You own a telescope?" Tony asked, wide-eyed.

Rose grinned, handing Donna a mug of tea. Tony was sat cross-legged on the floor, staring up at Wilf, who sat on one of the sofas.

"I do," Wilf responded, nodding. "And maybe one evening, if you ask your sister nicely, she'll bring you up to our house so I can show you!"

A grin spread across the five year old's face, and he suddenly clambered to his feet, running over to Rose.

"Can I Rose? Can I, can I, can I?"

"We'll see," Rose laughed, ruffling her brother's hair. "I'll see when we're free and when Wilf's free, and we'll sort out a date, yeah?"

"And we won't have to leave early? Like at Ellie's? 'Cause she was nice," Tony replied, staring up at Rose.

Donna raised her eyebrow, sensing a story there. Rose bit her lip and, evading the question entirely, handed Wilf his tea.

"How would you like Wilf to take you out today, Tony?" she asked the boy as she did so. "Donna and I have a surprise planned for you, but you won't get it until later."

**~StormWolf10~**

Little more than an hour later, Wilf had taken Tony into the town. He'd said he was considering taking the boy for a walk down by the beach, maybe to the park. The five year old had been taken with Wilf the moment he found out the old man had a telescope, and had been more than happy enough for the man to take him out. Rose and Donna waved them off, and once the door was shut, Donna rounded on Rose.

"What did Tony mean earlier about leaving some 'Ellie's house early?" Donna asked, eyebrow arched and arms folded.

Rose rolled her eyes. Donna hadn't changed much, Rose realised, from when they were little. Her fiery temper had remained well into adulthood.

"We… We went to someone's house and there was a bit of a… problem," Rose responded evasively, before adding: "Shall we get started painting Tony's room?"

Donna followed Rose upstairs, but she refused to let the situation drop.

"But why did you leave early?"

Rose sighed, leading Donna into the smaller of the two bedrooms, Tony's room.

"You remember when that kid was found dead on the beach?" she asked, spinning round to face the other woman.

Donna nodded, brow furrowed as she tucked a strand of ginger hair behind her ear.

"Yeah, and the killer was married to that Police woman," Donna responded.

"Exactly," Rose sighed. "We were at Ellie Carter's- well, Ellie Miller's house. Didn't realise who she was until halfway through the night. That Alec Hardy was there too, they'd brought Tony home when he wandered off last week, and Ellie invited me round."

Donna's eyes widened.

"You mean… You were in her house?" Donna asked, aghast.

Rose nodded, moving to pull the paint out of the bottom of the wardrobe. She was amazed Tony hadn't noticed it.

"Alec Hardy reckons she had nothing to do with it, and I believe him, sort of, but… I couldn't let Tony stay in there, you know?"

As Rose turned around, Donna saw how worried the younger woman looked. They may not have seen each other since they were kids, but Donna suddenly found herself feeling very protective of Rose, and she quickly moved to embrace her. They remained like that for a few long moments, before Rose sighed and pulled away.

"Right," Donna announced, clapping her hands together. "What are we doing about your brother's room?"

**~StormWolf10~**

By the time Wilf brought Tony home a little way into the afternoon, Donna and Rose had finished painting his room. Donna had been a little sceptical at first when Rose had produced a pot of dark grey and a pot of light grey paint.

"He's into Knights and castles and dragons and stuff," Rose had explained.

And so they'd painted all four walls grey, using both the light and dark grey paint to make it look like large stone bricks. The wall opposite the door, the wall Tony's bed was usually against, had a large burgundy banner painted on it, just above where Tony's bed would go. Courtesy of Donna's quick thinking and Rose's art skills- she'd mentally thanked her Dad for making her take art at GCSE level-, the banner was reminiscent of the Hogwarts House banners seen in the Great Hall in Harry Potter films. Donna had nipped out while Rose had sketched the banner on the wall, and bought some small pots of paint, and the banner had the name 'Tyler' along the bottom in metallic silver paint, as well as a large green dragon in front of a castle silhouette. While they'd painted the room, Rose had told Donna about everything that had happened once she and Tony had moved to Broadchurch.

"Wanna come and see your surprise?" Rose asked her little brother once he'd barrelled into the house and pulled his trainers off.

"Yeah!" he nodded eagerly.

Grinning, Rose offered the boy her hand.

"Come on then," she told him, leading him up the stairs.

Wilf and Donna nodded, Wilf to see what they'd done, and Donna to see Tony's reaction. Upon seeing his room, Tony looked ecstatic, beaming away as he hugged Rose tight.

"Donna helped too, you know," she told him with a grin.

"Thank you, Donna!" the boy announced, throwing himself at the woman who- up until that morning- had been a stranger to him.

"No problem, sweetheart," Donna told him with a smile.

"Did you have a good time with Wilf?" Rose asked as she led the boy back downstairs.

Tony nodded, although he was a little miffed he wasn't allowed in his room until the paint had finished drying.

"Uh huh," Tony grinned. "Wilf bought me an ice cream!"

"Hope you don't mind," Wilf chuckled nervously, "he was very well-behaved."

Rose just smiled.

"As long as he behaved himself," she replied with a smile.

"Have you settled into Broadchurch alright, then?" Wilf asked as they headed back into the living room to sit down.

Rose nodded.

"Yeah, it's been alright."

"She's already met Alec Hardy and Ellie Carter," Donna broke in with a significant look at her Granddad.

"Yeah, but Rose made us leave early!" Tony pouted.

"Rose was telling me earlier that she's met Alec Hardy several times," Donna chipped in.

Rose rolled her eyes.

"Three times, Donna. Three times," Rose corrected. "And two of those times were because Tony had gotten himself into trouble."

Tony went wide-eyed.

"I didn't mean to!" the five year old protested, fearing he was in trouble again.

"I know, sweetheart," Rose assured him, smoothing down her brother's hair.

They fell into an uncomfortable silence then, and stayed that way for several minutes.

"So," Wilf piped up eventually, "other than Tony wandering off, have you settled in alright?"

Rose nodded, giving the old man a small smile.

"Money's a bit tight, but yeah, we've settled in," Rose assured him. "Didn't realise how expensive Tony's new uniform would be."

Wilf nodded in agreement.

"Ah, yes," he recalled with a wry smile. "Sylvia was always complaining about the cost of Donna's school uniform."

"Wasn't my fault she sent me to the village equivalent of St Trinian's," Donna muttered under her breath.

**~StormWolf10~**

"I could lend you some money, you know," Wilf told Rose later that night.

Tony had dragged Donna upstairs to play in his room, leaving Rose and Wilf some time to talk. Rose wrinkled her nose.

"I'm not sure, Wilf," she admitted worriedly. "I couldn't ask that from you."

"You're not asking," Wilf sniffed. "I'm offering. I don't mind, you know."

"I know," Rose responded quietly, "but… I'm not sure."

"Well," Wilf responded gently, a small smile on his lips. "How about I let you think about it? I'm only a phone call away."

Rose nodded, grateful.

"What do you think of that Alec Hardy, then?" Wilf continued suddenly. "Only met him a few times. Seemed a little… Anti-social."

Rose shrugged.

"He's alright, I suppose," Rose began slowly. "He was quite good with Tony…. A little rude, but alright."

"Don't know how Ellie Carter puts up with it," Wilf announced. "She's a lovely woman, you know. Surprised she puts up with Hardy, though."

Rose nodded silently. Ellie Carter was a good woman, Rose knew that. Lovely. And that made Rose feel even guiltier about not wanting Tony near her. Because up until the point where Rose's mind had made the connections, she'd really been getting on with Ellie… With a small sigh, Rose frowned slightly. Maybe it was time to act like an adult and try to get to know Ellie, past be damned.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Gah! It's taken so long! On the plus side, I've got the next chapter planned... Tell me if you think I'm moving too fast in the story, though... It's hard to judge...**

Alec Hardy hated shopping. Hated how busy it was, hated the screaming children begging their tired parents for sweets, hated that he always seemed to get the trolley with the wonky wheel. He hated that everyone in Broadchurch seemed to try and stop and talk to him, even though they knew how grumpy he was, and knew how much he hated grocery shopping. He hated that the supermarket in Broadchurch was nothing like the one he'd used in Glasgow, hated that it was a different layout, hated that- for some reason- they put the butter and the sweets down the same aisle. Who did that? Alec Hardy hated shopping, but he hated it even more when it was so packed. He gritted his teeth, gripping his trolley hard as he pushed it through clusters of families, of crying infants and pouting kids. Why did people have to bring their whole family shopping? Why did Mum, Dad, and the 2.5 kids have to come along, what was the point? It only caused arguments and blocked up the aisles. He paused momentarily to chuck a bag of carrots into his trolley, and then made his way out of the aisle. He made short work of the cleaning products aisle, avoiding the pet food aisle altogether- he hated pets. Got hairs everywhere, slept in your bed…-, and was soon in the frozen foods section. He knew he should be eating healthier, that although he had a pacemaker, it didn't automatically cure him. But he was already tired from the trek to the shops, and instead just threw a few pizzas into the trolley. Heading round to get to where the chips and frozen fish were kept, the wheel of Alec's trolley suddenly spun out, leaving him wrestling with the object. Concentrating more on the trolley, he didn't notice until too late as he collided with another trolley. Teeth still gritted, Alec looked up, preparing himself for another Broadchurch resident to greet him and strike up a conversation, wasting his time as well as theirs. And so, he was somewhat shocked when he saw Rose Tyler in front of him.

"Oh. Sorry," he told her. "Blasted trolley. I always manage to get the one with the wonky wheel."

Rose blinked, looked at the offending trolley, and then back at Alec's face. She nodded slowly.

"Have you had a chance to speak to Carter yet?" Alec asked, surprising even himself. Just moments ago he'd been internally complaining about people striking up conversations in the middle of the shopping aisle.

Rose blinked, blushed, and shook her head.

"Uh, no," she admitted, a little shyly. "Been busy. Some family friends came down to see us yesterday, and I've started work."

"Where?"

Rose blinked again, shocked by the rudeness.

"I'm sorry?" she asked in confusion.

"Where do you work?" Alec repeated, sounding a little frustrated.

"Well, here," Rose admitted, blushing again. "Only part-time, though. Ten till two, Monday to Friday."

Alec sniffed, and nodded. There was an awkward pause.

"You will speak to Ellie though, won't you?" he asked, brow furrowing.

Rose looked away, and moved to drop a packet of fish fingers into her trolley. When she made no move to reply, Alec glanced down at the contents of her trolley.

"It's not healthy to keep feeding your brother all those frozen foods and ready meals, you know," he told her bluntly.

Rose sniffed.

"Yeah, well, it's that, or we don't eat," she replied, just as blunt. "I've only been working a few days; don't get my first lot of wages until the end of the month. And until then, we'll have to make do with what little money we have."

Alec blinked, and looked around.

"Where _is_ your brother?" he asked.

"He wanted to join the football club at the Primary school," Rose sighed. "God knows how long we'll be able to afford that for…"

And then Rose was gripping her trolley, manoeuvring it around Alec. Grabbing a box of fish fingers and a bag of chips, he set off after Rose. She glanced over as his trolley came into her peripheral vision.

"Thought you said frozen food and ready meals weren't healthy for you?" she asked quietly, annoyance evident in her tone.

Alec shrugged.

"I'm a grown man. I'm feeding no one but myself."

Rose scoffed, and began making her way to the checkouts.

"These friends of yours," Alec continued. "They're the ones you told Ellie and I about, yes?"

Rose nodded a little reluctantly.

"Well then, why didn't they lend you any money?"

"Wilf offered, but I turned him down," Rose shrugged. "Like I said before, his granddaughter Donna's only a temp, and Wilf's ex-Army, retired. Sells national newspapers twice a week though, comes down to Broadchurch for that."

Alec blinked, watching as Rose slowed to a stop at a checkout and began piling her food on the conveyor belt.

"Hang on, Newspaper Wilf?" he asked with a frown. "Wilfred Mott?"

Rose frowned then, and nodded, before turning back to her task.

"Yeah, why?" she asked.

"Met him a few times," Alec shrugged. "Has a loud, ginger granddaughter who drives him down in her car." He paused. "Didn't realise you meant _that_ Wilf."

"Does it make a difference?" Rose asked, not looking up.

Alec sniffed and shrugged again.

"Not really," he admitted after a moment. "Like I said, met him a few times. Seemed very… Friendly."

"He told me he thought you were anti-social," Rose responded, glancing up at the DI.

Alec's brow furrowed at that, and he noted the slight glint in Rose's eye.

"I was halfway through a murder investigation!" Alec retorted defensively. "I didn't want to stop and buy a bloody paper! Half the time it was rubbish about the investigation down here anyway! Like those journalists in London had any _idea_ what was happening down here…"

The customer in front of Rose finally paid and collected their shopping, heading for the door. Moving up, Rose wheeled her trolley to the end of the checkout before beginning to pack her shopping into bags once it was scanned. Alec watched her for a few moments, wondering if he'd said something stupid, upset her somehow. He put the little divider in between the last of Rose's shopping and the first of his, before putting his own shopping on the conveyor belt. He didn't have as much as Rose, like he'd said he was only feeding himself. So, with that done, he went back to observing Rose. He felt like a bit of an idiot actually, just staring at her. He was Alec Hardy, grumpy DI, why was he staring at the young, pretty, new Broadchurch resident and desperately trying to strike up a conversation? He hated talking to people other than Ellie Carter- and even that was hit and miss when she kept lecturing him on eating healthier- so why was he so insistent on speaking to Rose Tyler? Soon, all her items had been rung up, and Alec watched as Rose went about digging out the money from her purse. And then, he surprised himself even further.

"I'll pay for it," he announced to the checkout assistant.

The young man blinked at the DI, before looking at Rose uncertainly. Rose herself was just gaping.

"Just this once, mind," Alec continued to Rose, voice hard. "I'm not your personal shopper, Rose Tyler."

Rose, still stunned, nodded. She waited in silence, her shopping bags in her trolley while Alec had his shopping scanned through as well and rung up with Rose's. She could have died from embarrassment when the final figure of nearly a hundred pounds came up. Alec Hardy, however, didn't even blink, merely handing over several £20 notes and lifting his shopping back into his trolley.

"How are you getting home?" he asked Rose, not checking to see if she was actually following as he made his way out the shop and into the car park.

"Taxi, why?" Rose asked, and even without looking, Alec could tell she was frowning.

"What time does Tony's football finish?" he asked.

"Half eleven," Rose responded.

Alec stopped walking as he reached the pick-up point, and pulled out a mobile.

"Carter, I'm at the supermarket. Can you pick me up?"

Rose blinked, watching as Alec and Ellie exchanged a few words before the Scotsman hung up.

"Ellie's picking us up."

"No, Ellie's picking _you_ up," Rose told him.

"She'll pick you up too," Alec replied, slipping his mobile into the pocket of his suit jacket.

Rose blinked. Did he ever wear anything else?

**~StormWolf10~**

Alec had been right. Ellie had picked Rose up too. It was a little strained in the car on the way home, and soon Rose could bear it no longer.

"I'm sorry, Ellie!"

Ellie blinked, slowing to a stop at some traffic lights and glancing over to look at Rose. Rose waited with bated breath. And then Ellie's shoulders sagged.

"You were doing what you thought was best for Tony," Ellie responded reasonably. "I'd have done the same had I been in your position."

"Doesn't make it right, though," Rose murmured guiltily, turning her attention to people walking past the car on the pavement.

Alec sniffed, but said nothing.

"Maybe, if you wanted to," Ellie began nervously after a moment, just as she pulled away when the traffic lights turned green, "you could come to mine one Saturday. Olly could have the boys, he loves Tom and Fred, and I'm sure he'd take Tony as well. We could… We could have a chat. Sort things out between us."

"That… That would be good, yeah," Rose agreed after a moment, a small smile on her face.

They settled into a slightly less tense silence then, only broken a few times by Alec asking where Tom and Fred were- Ellie explained Olly had taken them to the park-, and Ellie suggesting they stop by and pick Tony up from football. Rose had blanched at that, hadn't realised how late she'd have been had she gotten a taxi.

"The school wouldn't have let him leave on his own," Ellie assured her as she pulled into the school car park. "They're very good with things like that."

As it was, Tony was covered in mud, but Ellie barely blinked, explaining that she was used to it due to all the years Tom had done football at school.

"Hi, Ellie!" Tony announced happily as he clambered into the back of the car.

"Hi, Tony, did you enjoy yourself?" Ellie asked, smiling at the boy's reflection in the rear view mirror.

Tony nodded eagerly, but then turned to Rose.

"Rose, can I get football boots?" he asked eagerly.

Alec glanced round to see that Rose had paled.

"We'll… We'll have to wait and see, yeah? I'm sure your trainers are good enough, you've only had them a few days," Rose replied with a slightly strained smile.

Tony's face dropped.

"Oh," he responded, dejected. "Ok."

There was a pause. Then:

"Rose, can you get me a football kit?"

"Tony, you've got plenty of t-shirts and you've got your PE shorts you can use," Rose told her brother calmly.

"I know, but Declan-"

"Who's Declan?" Rose asked. "Did you make a friend?"

Tony nodded.

"Yeah, Declan, he's not in my class at school though," Tony replied, before continuing with barely any time to breathe. "Declan's got a Chelsea FC! Can I have a Chelsea FC kit?"

"You'll have to wait and see what you get for your birthday, won't you?" Rose told him.

Again, Tony deflated.

"But Rose!" he whined. "That's _months_ away!"

"I can't just keep buying you stuff, Tony, we don't have the money," Rose sighed. "I just bought you your new school uniform."

Tony pouted.

"But I didn't _want_ a new school uniform!" he muttered under his breath. "I wanted a pair of football boots and a Chelsea FC kit!"

Rose sighed, and caught Ellie's eye, who merely grinned in response. From where she was sat behind the drivers' side in the car, Rose could just about see the side of Alec's face, and even he seemed amused by Tony. Still, being amused by him didn't change the fact that Rose simply couldn't afford to keep buying him things. Soon, Ellie was pulling up outside their house, and Alec helped Rose with the shopping.

"Thanks for the lift," Rose told Ellie, a little nervously. "And if you give me a ring about that Saturday thing, I'm free pretty much every week."

Ellie nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, I'll… I'll give you a call," Ellie replied.

And then Alec was back in Ellie's car, sniffing and trying to prompt her to start the car up again. With an eye roll and a wave, Ellie started up the engine and pulled away from the Tylers' house.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: In which Rose and Ellie make a fresh start, and Alec is left as babysitter.**

The following Saturday saw Rose arriving with Tony at the Carters' house. Within thirty seconds or so, the door was opened, revealing a smiling Ellie. She invited them inside quickly, already talking.

"Alec's going to take the boys out, and I talked him into having them to tea as well," Ellie was saying as she led Rose into the sitting room.

"Hang on, Alec's having the boys?" Rose echoed, brow furrowed.

It wasn't that she didn't like- _like_?- the Detective Inspector, and he'd been rather nice with Tony, but babysitting three boys for the afternoon and part of the evening? Rose wasn't sure the Scotsman would cope.

"Yeah, well, my nephew Olly was going to have them, but Maggie wanted him to write up a report. He works at the Broadchurch Echo, you see," Ellie explained.

"Your nephew's Olly from the newspaper?" Rose asked, shocked. She recalled the boy, probably a year or two younger than her, and he'd stared at her when she'd gone in to ask about jobs.

"Yeah," Ellie nodded, looking up from where she'd been tidying some of Fred's toys away. "Why?"

Rose shook her head, suddenly feeling awkward.

"No, 's nothing," Rose responded. "'S just he… Stared a bit, when I met him."

Ellie snorted at that, shaking her head.

"He's a nice enough boy," Ellie told her as she straightened up. "Just can't keep his eyes to himself."

She then paused, lifting Fred onto her hip before calling up the stairs to Tom.

"Alec's gonna be here soon," she told her son. "Can you get your shoes on ready?"

There was no reply from Tom, but they could hear him moving about upstairs. A minute or so later, there were footsteps, and Tom appeared at the bottom of the stairs.

"Tom!"

Tony's face lit up in a grin, and he pulled his hand from Rose's, bounding over to the eleven year old. Tom grinned too, ruffling Tony's blonde hair.

"D'you think Alec will let us play football at the park?" Tony asked, looking up at Tom with wide eyes.

Tom shrugged.

"We can ask," the older boy replied with a grin. "Or we can just take my football anyway."

Rose watched the exchange in amusement, and Ellie looked like she was about to speak, when there was a knock on the door. Ellie moved to answer the door, and a minute or so later, she was returning with Alec in tow. Rose blinked. The Scotsman looked as grumpy as ever, but for once wasn't wearing his usual black suit. Well, he sort of wasn't. He was still wearing the black suit trousers, and a plain white button down shirt. Maybe it was as casual as he got, Rose mused.

"Alec! Can me and Tony go and play football at the park?" Tom asked suddenly, already moving to grab his coat from the hook.

Alec blinked.

"I… Yeah, as long as there's something for Fred to do too," he responded, looking a little shocked at being bombarded with questions the moment he stepped through the door.

Tony and Tom grinned, and Tom turned to run back up the stairs, yelling something about getting his football as he did so. Alec stood, with his hands in his pockets, while Ellie got Fred ready. He nodded at Rose, who smiled a little uncertainly back, but other than that they were silent.

**~StormWolf10~**

"You sure you'll be alright with them?" Ellie asked as she handed Fred over to Alec.

Alec was outside, a rucksack full of nappies and things for Fred over one shoulder, Tom and Tony already kicking the football up and down while Rose and Ellie stood in the doorway to see them off. Alec sighed and nodded.

"Yes, Carter," he huffed, annoyance evident in his tone. "I have done this before, you know."

Ellie nodded, while Rose frowned. There was a story there, of that Rose was certain. But Alec was being nice enough to take the boys so that she and Ellie could talk, and she didn't want to upset him.

"I'll bring them back at about seven, then," he continued, sounding a little dejected, although Rose was sure he wouldn't have agreed if he was that annoyed about it. "After they've had their tea."

Ellie and Rose nodded again, and then Alec was taking Tony's hand, encouraging Tom next door to his own house. Ellie shut the door firmly, leading Rose back into the sitting room.

"So," Ellie began, standing awkwardly in the middle of the sitting room, "would you like a drink? Tea? Coffee?"

Rose shook her head, smiling politely as she sat down on the sofa. Ellie sat down on the other end of the sofa, in silence. They stayed that way for several long moments.

"I really didn't know about what my husband had done," Ellie piped up suddenly, staring across the room rather than meeting Rose's gaze.

"Ellie, you don't have to-" Rose began in concern, but Ellie cut in over the top of her.

"No, I _do_ have to explain myself, Rose, I do. I failed as a Police Officer, and a Mother, and as a best friend… Beth Latimer and I, we used to be best friends. But then, after what Joe had done…"

And then Ellie's face crumpled, and her shoulders shook with silent sobs as she buried her face in her hands. Rose watched for a few moments, unsure what to do. But then she was moving, across the sofa to sit beside the older woman, a comforting hand on her back.

"I really _am_ sorry, Ellie," Rose told the woman softly. "I… I knew you had nothing to do with it really, but… I panicked. I haven't known you long, but I know you're a good woman, Ellie, and I've seen what an amazing Mum you are. What…. What your ex-husband did, well… It was horrible, of course it was, but you can't keep blaming yourself."

They fell into silence again then, as Ellie sobbed. Soon, though, her sobs slowed and stopped, and she looked up at Rose with red-rimmed eyes.

"I must look a right state," she sighed with a weak smile as she rubbed at her eyes. "Sorry about that."

Rose, however, just smiled and shook her head.

"Nothing to apologise for," Rose replied.

**~StormWolf10~**

Alec stood in the park, pushing Fred in a toddler swing. Tom and Tony were kicking a football back and forth between them, happily laughing and chatting some while away. Just how he was meant to occupy three boys between the ages of eleven and one for several hours, he wasn't quite sure, and he was beginning to regret agreeing to it. Fred was gurgling to himself, twisting and turning in the swing. It took Alec a few moments to realise that Fred was growing bored with the swing, and so he swung the boy out of the seat, setting him on his feet. Almost immediately, the little toddler set off at a slightly unsteady run towards his big brother, his brown curls bouncing against his forehead. Alec followed with a sigh, almost falling over Fred when the boy suddenly bent to stare at a bug instead.

"Look!"

Alec looked.

"Look!" Fred repeated, thrusting his finger at Alec.

"Mmm, yeah," Alec told the boy, crouching in front of him. "That's a ladybird."

It was Fred who looked then, blinking at the bug on the end of his finger. And then, his finger dropped, the ladybird tumbling off into the grass as the toddler lost interest in it.

"Tom!"

And then Fred was running again. Alec straightened with a quiet groan. He'd forgotten just how energetic little children could be. Rubbing his chest absent-mindedly, he set off after the toddler again. Tom and Tony were still playing football, and as Fred reached them, Alec could only hope that neither of them inadvertently kicked the little boy in the head with the football.

"We gonna get going soon, boys?" Alec asked as he reached Tony and Tom.

"Aww, why?" Tony whined, staring up at Alec and pouting.

"Because Fred will get bored," Alec responded calmly. "You can play in the garden."

"What are we having for tea?" Tom asked suddenly, reaching down to pick up his football.

"Whatever I have at home," Alec responded, moving to take hold of Fred's hand.

And with that, he began leading them out of the park.

**~StormWolf10~**

"What do you think of Alec, then?"

Rose blinked, staring at Ellie over the rim of her coffee mug. She and Ellie had brought each other up to speed on their lives before they'd met, and they were quickly becoming firm friends. The sudden switch in conversation from Tom, Fred and Tony, to Alec Hardy, however, had shocked Rose.

"Sorry?" she asked, brow furrowing.

"What do you think of Alec?" Ellie repeated, a grin spreading across her face. "Come on, Rose! You've met him several times! What do you think of him?"

"He's… Alright, I suppose," Rose shrugged, staring into her mug. "A bit… Rude sometimes. Gruff. And does he only ever wear black suits?"

Ellie snorted and nodded at that.

"Never seen him in anything else," Ellie confided. "Well, other than a hospital gown. Bloody git went and collapsed on me during the investigation." There was a pause. "But that's his story to tell."

Rose nodded in understanding. And then, Ellie's grin was back.

"Do you like him?"

Rose blinked again.

"Like him how?" she asked, uncertain what Ellie was getting at.

"You know exactly what I mean, Rose Tyler!" Ellie responded with an evil grin.

Rose blushed. Actually, properly blushed.

"Well, he's alright, I suppose…" she began cautiously, repeating her words from moments before. She bit her lip. "Might look quite handsome if he shaved…"

"You like him!" Ellie announced happily.

Rose shifted uncomfortably.

"Oh my god, you _really_ like him!" Ellie realised.

"I… He… I dunno," Rose faltered, brow furrowing. "He's different. I've not dated many guys. Not dated many older guys…" She trailed off and blushed again. "Not… Not that Alec's old, or anythin'!"

Ellie just snorted.

"Why don't you ask him out for a drink, or something? I'd happily have Tony. He could sleep here for the night if you wanted," Ellie offered.

"We've only been friends a few hours," Rose pointed out, although she was smiling. "Three hours ago, we weren't even properly talking."

Ellie shrugged.

"Well yeah, but we seem to be getting on well," Ellie replied. "And we both know what you did was because you were worried about Tony. Like I said before, I'd have done the same thing." There was a pause. "So, Rose Tyler, are you going to ask Alec out for a drink, or not?"

"I… Does he drink?" Rose asked, brow furrowing.

Ellie opened her mouth to reply, and then paused.

"Maybe it's best not to go for anything alcoholic," she suggested after a few moments. "He always refused to go to the pub after work, and I'm not sure if his operation means he can't have alcohol now."

Rose nodded thoughtfully.

"Why did he have an operation?" Rose asked. "Or are you got gonna tell me?"

Ellie sighed, thinking for a few moments.

"Not telling you," Ellie replied after a few moments. "Like I said, it's his story to tell."

Rose groaned slightly in annoyance, and Ellie chuckled.

**~StormWolf10~**

"Don't run off please," Alec announced, slight annoyance tingeing his tone.

Tom and Tony were running off down the road in front of him, Tom kicking the football along, and Tony running along appearing to fight an imaginary dragon. Fred was toddling along beside Alec, gripping his hand in his own smaller one. The two older boys, however, paid Alec little attention, and with a groan, the Detective Inspector swung the toddler onto his hip and picked up his pace. He reached Tom first, and almost immediately, he realised what he'd done wrong. With a muttered apology to Alec, he stooped to pick up his football. Tony, however, remained blissfully oblivious, running down the road as he slayed the imaginary dragon, yelling phrases like "take that!" and "die, beast, die!"

"Tony!"

The boy froze. And, very slowly, he turned to stare at Alec.

"For god's sake," Alec told the five year old angrily as he reached him, Tom trailing after him. "I told you not to run off! How am I supposed to explain to your sister that you walked under a car, eh?"

And then, Alec saw the boy's face crumple.

"No, no, don't-" Alec began, anger turning to panic and his voice growing quiet as Tony began to sob.

Alec inwardly cursed. It was a bloody stupid thing to say to a five year old, he knew that. Would have never spoken to his daughter like that, so why had he done it to Tony? He was out of touch, Alec decided. Hadn't had to deal with little kids for a long time. It was even more of a stupid thing to say, he knew, to a kid whose Dad had been run over only seven weeks before.

"Fan-_bloody_-tastic," Alec sighed.

Pushing Fred into Tom's arms, he stooped to lift the now-wailing five year old into his arms. Alec winced as Tony continued crying right in his ear. With a sigh, and hoping that Rose and Ellie wouldn't hear, Alec began to hurry home.

**~StormWolf10~**

Tony was still wailing as Alec unlocked the front door. He glanced worriedly over at Ellie's house every now and then, but there was no movement. Quickly, he ushered Tom inside with Fred, following with Tony.

"Please stop crying," Alec sighed as he shut the front door firmly.

Tony sniffed. He'd gotten to the horrid, runny-nosed, trying-to-stop stage of the whole crying process, eyes red, nose running and throat sore.

"If you stop crying, I'll give you chocolate," Alec tried.

It didn't catch Tony's attention, but it certainly got Fred's. The toddler grinned, and held his hand out to Alec expectantly.

"Chocolate?" the toddler asked.

Alec sighed. Wincing slightly, he lowered Tony to the ground and sat him on the stairs.

"Tom, go to the fridge and get your brother some chocolate," the Scotsman told the eleven year old. He then paused, looking at Tony before looking at Tom again. "And bring some for Tony. It might shut him up."

Tom's eyebrow arched, but did as he asked. Less than a minute later, he was back at Alec's side, handing a small chocolate bar to Fred, and the other to Alec. Alec responded by thrusting the bar into Tony's hand. The boy didn't take it.

"Oh, come on! You're a five year old! Five year olds love chocolate!" Alec muttered, desperately trying to recall what he'd done with his own daughter when she'd cried at that age.

"Have you tried rocking him?" Tom asked nervously.

Alec blinked, and looked up at the boy. Fred's breath was coming out in tiny, frustrated bursts as he struggled to open his chocolate bar. Absent-mindedly, Alec reached over and took the chocolate bar from the toddler, opening it and handing it back to him. A frown formed on the Scotsman's face.

"You think it'll work?" he asked uncertainly.

He'd often worked late, from when his daughter had started school, right up to the present. He'd usually only just gotten home for bedtime, and his wife had often complained about the tantrums and screaming and tears that had accompanied bath time, homework time, dinner time. But Alec hadn't been around, he'd been too busy working; his wife had not worked from just after their daughter had been born to when their daughter had started senior school. His daughter had always been very well-behaved when Alec was around, and whenever she hadn't been well-behaved, a bar of chocolate had always cheered her up. She'd been a Daddy's girl through and through. Well, not any more she wasn't…

Alec mentally shook himself as Tom began speaking.

"Well, it works for Mum when Fred has a tantrum or won't stop crying," Tom shrugged.

Alec blinked, and, very slowly, reached for Tony. The crying had quietened down a bit more, but he was still sobbing. Settling the boy against his chest and straightening up, Alec stood awkwardly in the middle of the hallway, rocking the boy gently. After a few moments, there was a sniffling noise from the boy, and he quietened. Alec blinked.

"You alright now?" Alec asked the little boy in his arms.

Tony sniffed and nodded.

"And you're not gonna tell your sister about this?"

Tony shook his head. Alec's shoulders slumped in relief. It was Tom's voice that interrupted the sudden silence.

"Uh, Alec? I think Fred needs changing."

Alec groaned.

"Fan- bloody- _tastic_."

**~StormWolf10~**

"It's a bit early for that, isn't it?" Rose asked, nodding at the wine bottle and two glasses Ellie was holding as she re-entered the sitting room.

Ellie shrugged. It was six o'clock in the evening, but Ellie had been insistent.

"Well, we've only got till seven," she replied with a wicked grin.

Rose grinned back, and accepted the glass.

"So, did Alec offer to look after the kids, or did you ask?" Rose asked as Ellie poured the wine.

"Well, I dropped a lot of hints," Ellie grinned smugly. "And then when he didn't get them, I just asked outright."

Rose chuckled.

"Sounds like him," she agreed quietly. Then she paused. "I hope Tony's alright with him."

"I'm sure Tony will be fine," Ellie assured her. "Tom's there with him, and Alec's not that bad."

**~StormWolf10~**

Alec groaned as Tony ran through the house, Fred giggling as he stumbled after him. The boys had barely finished dinner before they were up and running around again. Well, Tony and Fred were. Tom was making himself useful, helping Alec with the washing up. Alec smiled gratefully at the boy before glancing at the clock. Ten to seven. Almost time to take the boys back. Finishing the last of the washing up, Alec wiped his hands on a dishcloth and sighed.

"Tony, can you get your shoes on?" he shouted to the five year old.

He heard the boy yell back. Heading out into the front room, Alec managed to grab Fred and carry him over to the sofa. Sitting down with the toddler on his lap, the Scotsman grumbled under his breath as he slipped the boy's shoes on his feet.

"You got all your stuff, Tom?" he asked as Tom handed him Fred's coat.

Tom just nodded.

"Right. Good," Alec announced, setting Tom on his feet and standing up. "Come on then, out we go."

And then, he was urging the kids towards the door. Tony was still struggling with his coat, and he stooped to help the boy before taking his hand. Barely a minute later, they were outside Ellie's. Alec knocked on the door, and waited. Moments later, it was flung open by a beaming Ellie.

"Hiya, boys! Did you have a good time with Alec?"

"Yeah, it was good," Tom announced, pushing his way into the house.

"Did they behave themselves?" Rose asked, appearing at Ellie's side as Alec let Tony's hand go. The five year old immediately ran to his older sister.

Alec nodded.

"They were very well behaved," Alec responded, eyes on Tony even as he handed Fred to Ellie. It had taken a lot of sweets, but he'd finally managed to persuade the five year old not to tell Rose about the tearful trip back from the park. He just hoped the boy would stay quiet.

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"Well," Rose began again after a few moments. "We'd better get going."

"You sure?" Ellie asked, even as Rose reached for her coat on the hook.

Rose nodded.

"Yeah," Rose nodded, smiling at Ellie. "I'm surprised Tony was as well behaved as he was, he's not been sleeping very well."

Alec blinked, and looked down at the boy. He was surprised he hadn't noticed it sooner, he'd been looking after the boy all afternoon. But it was only then that he realised just how tired the little boy looked.

"Nightmares?" Ellie asked Rose quietly.

Rose nodded in reply, lifting her brother into her arms. And then, Ellie nudged her with her shoulder. Rose looked over at Ellie with a small frown. Ellie raised her eyebrow and jerked her head towards Alec. Alec frowned, watching the interaction.

"Well, I'm gonna… I'm gonna head home," Alec announced slowly, gesturing over his shoulder.

Ellie and Rose, however, didn't seem to hear him.

"Go _on_!" Ellie insisted, voice low as she jerked her head towards Alec again.

Rose, however, shook her head furiously.

"Ellie, I _can't_!"

"But-"

"Bye, Alec!"

It was Tony's voice that jerked the two women from the argument. When they looked round, all they could see was an empty doorway as Tony waved enthusiastically and Alec was nowhere to be seen.


	8. Chapter 8

"I know it's short notice, and I'm sorry, Donna, but could you? It's not too much of a bother, is it? Thanks. I'd have asked Ellie, but she doesn't finish at the station till about four."

Rose was huddled in the small staff room at the back of the supermarket. It was her lunch break, and her boss had informed them that one of the part-time employees had quit, a student who was moving to a different University. That meant that the shifts had to be covered, and Rose had jumped at the chance. It meant, of course, that she wouldn't finish until five the three nights a week she was covering the shift, and that she wouldn't be there to pick Tony up from school or cook his tea. But it did mean more money. And that's what won out. She wasn't being greedy; Rose knew money was tight, and she still didn't want to accept Wilf's offer of lending them some money. So the extra shifts had seemed obvious, and maybe she could find a job to do on a Sunday morning, just for a few hours while Tony was at football.

"So you're sure that's ok?" Rose asked again as Donna agreed to picking Tony up from school. "There's a spare key outside the door, under the flower pot."

Rose paused as Donna began berating her about how that was just asking for someone to break in.

"Yeah, well, why don't you keep hold of it then, yeah?" Rose sighed, rubbing at her forehead. She swore she had a migraine coming on. "Ok, thanks. I'll ring the school, let them know you'll be picking Tony up. Bye."

With another sigh, Rose ended the call, before dialling the number for Tony's school. As the phone rang, she glanced at the clock on the wall. Five more minutes and she was due back on the shop floor.

**~StormWolf10~**

"But why?"

"Because your sister's working late."

"But why?"

"To get more money, Tony."

"Why?"

"To buy you lots of nice things, and so you can afford to go to football and have nice meals. You've been living off of fish and chips," Donna informed the boy with a sigh.

Tony had been asking questions ever since she'd picked him up from school. His teacher had informed him that Donna was picking him up, but he still didn't seem convinced that Rose actually needed to do the extra shifts at work.

"But I like fish and chips! And so does Rose!" the boy told Donna, frowning up at her.

"Yeah, but you must be getting fed up with it by now," Donna told the boy. "Eating the same thing every day."

"Nuh uh!" Tony insisted, shaking his head furiously.

Donna sighed, shaking her own head. She hadn't realised just how stubborn little kids could be. As they neared Rose's house, Tony let go of Donna's hand, bounding over to where he knew his sister kept the spare key.

"Got it!" he announced happily, holding it up to Donna.

Donna took the key, ruffling the boy's blonde hair as she moved past him to unlock the door.

"In you go, then," she told him, holding the door open for him.

Tony made no effort to move from his place on the doorstep.

"Donna?" he asked suddenly, nose crinkling as he stared up at her in confusion. "When will Rose be home?"

"Not till later," Donna responded, trying to nudge the boy inside. "She finishes at 5 o'clock, so she should be home by about half five."

"So after tea?" Tony asked, face falling.

Donna nodded.

"Yep, I'm cooking your tea tonight," she told the boy.

Tony sighed, shoulders slumping.

"Fan-bloody-_tastic_," he sighed.

And with that, he made his way inside, leaving a bemused Donna blinking on the doorstep.

**~StormWolf10~**

"He said _what_?!" Rose asked, trying to keep her voice down even as it threatened to rise.

Donna bit her lip.

"Fan-bloody-tastic," Donna repeated nervously.

Rose let out a frustrated sigh, one hand going to rub at her temples. It had been a rough day at work, with the staff shortages and the extra shifts, and her migraine. And now, now she came home to find that someone had taught Tony a phrase he really shouldn't be saying.

"Where the hell did he get that from?" Rose asked, teeth gritted.

Donna shrugged, passing the younger woman a glass of water.

"I don't know," Donna admitted. "I don't even think he realised he'd said it. You think he picked it up at school?"

Rose sighed, sipping the cool water.

"Well, where else would he have picked it up from?" Rose asked. "He's only been with you and me, with Ellie briefly, and Tom, and Alec. I've never heard Ellie say it, plus she's having to be careful about what she says around Fred in case he picks anything up. Tom… Tom doesn't seem the type…"

And then Rose's eyes widened. Donna opened her mouth to ask what was going on, but then Rose was hurrying out into the hallway. Donna followed, watching as Rose pulled her phone out of her bag and dialled a number.

"Yeah, hi, it's Rose. I don't suppose you could come round?... Now would be best."

**~StormWolf10~**

"Well? Anything to say for yourself?"

Alec blinked. He wasn't sure what he'd been expecting, but it wasn't that. He'd gotten a phone call from Rose, and rushed round immediately- he was only doing his job as a Detective Inspector. Nothing else. Not like he was desperate to see her, or anything. Just concerned. About her safety. And Tony's.- but it seemed that he was in for an interrogation. He was now stood awkwardly in Rose's front room, with Rose in front of him, her arms across her chest and eyebrow arched. He guessed this was what she looked like when she was telling Tony off.

"Sorry, why am I here?" he asked, eyes flicking to the ginger woman in the corner. Donna, if he remembered correctly. Loud. Granddaughter of Wilf, who sold the Newspapers. They didn't really see eye-to-eye.

"You taught my little brother how to swear," Rose repeated the sentence from just a minute before.

Again, Alec blinked.

"Did I?" he asked. "When?"

"When you looked after him the other day, presumably," Rose responded. "Donna picked him up from school today, and when she told him I wouldn't be home from work until after his tea, he responded with- and I quote- 'fan-bloody-tastic'."

Alec sniffed, eyes widening ever-so-slightly. Part of him was aware that Rose lips had twitched, that she was finding it slightly amusing, but her need to be a mature adult, to raise her little brother and teach him the rights and wrongs of life were winning out.

"I'm sorry," Alec said after a few moments. "I… It sort of slipped out. Tony was crying, and I couldn't get him to stop-"

"Tony was crying?" Rose asked, her face dropping and shoulders slumping.

Alec swallowed.

"I… I sort of yelled at him," he admitted after a few moments. "He ran off. Again. You really need to teach him about crossing the road safely… I told him that if he wasn't careful, I'd have to explain to you that he'd walked under a car."

Rose's eyes shut at that, and she turned away. Donna scoffed in the corner, shaking her head. Alec glared at her.

"Why are you here, anyway?" he asked gruffly. "Haven't you got double-yellow lines to go park on?"

"Oh, that was once, get over it!" Donna snapped back.

Alec opened his mouth to retort, but then Rose was speaking again.

"Both of you, just… Stop, ok? Please?"

They fell into silence, and with a sigh, Rose turned to Donna.

"Thanks for today, Donna, but you'd better get going now."

Donna nodded, but never once stopped glaring at Alec.

"I'll see myself out," she responded.

A few moments later, the front door shut behind her.

"Alec, sit down."

Alec, surprisingly, did as he was told.

"Where's Tony?" he asked quietly.

"Upstairs, playing in his room," Rose explained.

"If you want, I… I could talk to him," Alec offered slowly, swallowing. "Explain that he shouldn't copy what I say."

Rose shook her head, but smiled.

"I've already had a chat with him about that. He knows it's naughty, and that he mustn't say it."

Alec sniffed again.

"I… I was wondering, though," Rose piped up suddenly, looking anywhere but Alec, "if you wanted to go out sometime. Or, not. You know, doesn't matter…"

Alec just stared. Rose swallowed, refusing to meet his eyes still.

"It was a stupid idea," Rose continued after a few moments. "Ellie thought it would be a good idea, but she was obviously wrong-"

"No, no, I'd… I'd like that," Alec cut in, brow furrowed. "But… I accidentally taught your brother to swear, and made him cry. Why would you want to go out with me after that?"

Rose shrugged, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"It's not the first time someone accidentally taught him to swear," she confessed, meeting Alec's gaze tentatively. "When he was about two, my Dad left me and my boyfriend Jimmy with him while he went to try and sort something out at the bank. We sort of forgot he was in the room, and he, well, he picked up on a few swearwords. We had to un-teach them to him really quick."

Alec chuckled, and moments later, Rose was laughing too.

"So, uh, next Saturday sound good?" Alec asked nervously after a few moments.

Rose blinked.

"For the, uh… To go out together?" Alec clarified.

Rose paused, and then nodded.

"Sounds great," she assured the Scotsman with a grin.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Alec and Rose finally get round to having that date, but things don't exactly go smoothly.**

Rose frowned at her reflection, smoothing down the dress she had on. Was it too much? She couldn't be sure. They hadn't even clarified that it was an actual, proper date. Was Alec just expecting them to go out for a drink together? Briefly, Rose wondered whether to call him and cancel, to say that Tony had a tummy upset, or a headache, or something. But no, she couldn't do that. Not to Alec, and not to Tony. The five year old would be spending the night at Ellie's, having a sleepover with Tom. Ellie had said that it was in case Rose and Alec were out longer than expected, but Rose had a suspicion that Ellie expected her to get drunk, or to go back to Alec's with him. Not that that would happen. Well, the second thing wouldn't. Rose couldn't be certain she wouldn't get drunk, though.

"Rose?" Tony asked from the door to her bedroom. "What're you doin'?"

"Getting ready to go out with Alec, sweetheart," Rose responded, flashing her little brother a reassuring smile over her shoulder.

"Oh."

Rose's smile dropped a little.

"What's the matter?" she asked Tony, feeling surprisingly disheartened. Only a few moments before, she'd been debating cancelling on Alec, and yet now it might be becoming a possibility, she was actually quite disappointed. It was just the nerves, she decided. Just the nerves that had made her consider cancelling the date.

"Nothing," Tony responded quietly, shaking his head.

"It's obviously not, Tony," Rose sighed, crossing the room to crouch in front of her brother. "Come on, sweetheart, I can't make it better if you won't tell me what's wrong."

Tony sniffed, and looked away for a few moments.

"You are coming back, right?" he asked quietly.

Rose's brow furrowed.

"Of course I am, sweetheart," Rose assured the boy quickly. "I'm picking you up from Ellie's in the morning. You haven't got football tomorrow, Mr Harris is still ill, so you'll have to come shopping with me, ok?"

Tony nodded, but still looked upset.

"Would you rather stay home?" Rose asked after a few moments, resigned.

Tony shrugged.

"I dunno," he replied, sniffing again. "I wanna go to Tom's, I do! But… But…"

"But you're scared of being away from me," Rose concluded quietly.

Tony nodded, and as tears began to fall, Rose tugged him into a hug.

"Tell you what, monkey," Rose told Tony as she hugged him to her, "if you still want to come home later, Ellie will phone me and I'll be straight there to pick you up, ok?"

Tony nodded, pulling away and wiping his nose on the sleeve of his long-sleeved white top. Rose grimaced.

"Go to the toilet and get a tissue, please," she told him. "And change your top. That'll have to go in the wash now."

She watched as Tony trundled out of her bedroom. She remained crouched for a few more moments before finally straightening. Rose took another look at her reflection, pondering her outfit. She was even less sure about the dress now than she'd been before. She hadn't worn it for a while, not for several months at least. It was one of her usual clubbing dresses, from when she'd been back on the estate, going out with her mates like Keisha and Shareen, or work friends. It was simple; a sleek black number that hugged her curves and fell to only mid-thigh. It had a low neckline and even lower back, and her Dad had hated it. Actually, he'd hated all her clubbing outfits. Rose had been going out to clubs and pubs since she was seventeen, all short skirts and low-cut tops, high heels and dresses. Her parents had always worried about her, going out in the estate dressed like that. Even though Keisha and Shareen and all the others had been dressed the same. They'd always worried. Her parents had tightened up on that privilege shortly after Jimmy Stone, and after her pregnancy scare, but just after Tony had been born, and after Jackie had died, Pete had decided that Rose deserved that one bit of freedom. Over the last eight weeks or so, Rose hadn't had much time to dress up and go out. In fact, several times after Pete had died, Rose had wondered if she'd have much time to dress up and go out ever again. She knew she was being silly, that she would, but her little brother was only five, and she was going to have to spend the next thirteen years or so raising him. By that time, she'd be thirty-six. Too close to forty for Rose to be comfortable with, if she were perfectly honest. Rose's brow furrowed at that. She'd be almost forty by the time her little brother was eighteen, and legally recognised as an adult. That didn't include any children she may have in the meantime- although Rose somehow doubted that that would happen. She stood, frowning at her reflection a few moments longer and then, she heard Tony padding back along the corridor. Rose stood a little straighter, tossed her hair over one shoulder, and stared. Well, she decided, if she was to spend the next thirteen years not getting out much and raising her brother, she was going to get one more wear out of this dress. With a grin, Rose reached for a pair of high heels.

**~StormWolf10~**

"Well, someone's certainly made an effort!"

Rose blushed and smiled uncertainly, unsure how to react to Ellie's good-natured teasing and wide grin. So instead, she nudged Tony into the house, handing Ellie his rucksack.

"He's got his pyjamas and stuff in there, as well as some sweets for him and Tom to share later," Rose explained as she handed the rucksack over. "And his cuddly dragon toy is in there, he won't sleep without it."

Ellie nodded in understanding.

"Do you want to come in for a few minutes?" Ellie asked as Tony disappeared into the sitting room.

Rose shook her head.

"No, I'd better get going. Said I'd meet Alec at the pub," Rose responded, gesturing over her shoulder.

"Walking?" Ellie asked, brow furrowed.

Rose nodded.

"Yeah, well, it's not far. I'll get a taxi back," Rose told her with a slight shrug, before remembering. "Oh, and Tony was a little nervous earlier about sleeping over. If he wants to come home and gets too upset about it, give me a ring and I'll come get him, yeah?"

Ellie nodded in understanding.

"Will do," she assured the younger woman.

Rose smiled gratefully, and called Tony's name. Almost immediately, the boy was back.

"I'm off now, ok?" Rose told him, bending down to hug her little brother. "You be good for Ellie, yeah?"

Tony nodded.

"Good," Rose continued with a grin. "Now, give me a kiss and I'll get going."

Tony obliged, giving his older sister a kiss before scampering back into the front room where, presumably, Tom and Fred were. With a final wave and thank you to Ellie, Rose was off, walking down the path.

**~StormWolf10~**

When Rose eventually entered the pub, she was regretting the high heels. She was also regretting wasting so much time reconsidering her outfit, doing her makeup twice, and fiddling about with her hair before finally getting Tony off to Ellie's. Alec was there, sat in a booth and sipping an orange juice, looking rather bored. Rather surprisingly, he wasn't in his usual black suit ensemble, and for the second time that night, Rose wondered if her outfit was too much. Although by the standards of any other men, Alec's clothing would be positively smart, but on the Scottish DI, it looked unusually casual. In just a button-down white shirt, and pair of slate grey trousers, with a pair of slim glasses perched on his nose, Alec Hardy looked… Well, odd. Mentally shaking herself, Rose crossed the room on shaky legs. As she approached, Alec spotted her, drained his glass, and rose to his feet.

"Was starting to think you wouldn't make it," Alec told her, and Rose wasn't sure if he was being serious or not.

But then he was gesturing for her to slide into the booth, opposite where he'd been sat, and she did so wordlessly.

"What can I get you to drink?" Alec asked, already pulling his wallet out of his pocket.

"Oh, right," Rose responded, brow furrowing slightly. "I'll, uh, I'll have a lager, then."

Alec nodded, and disappeared to the bar, leaving Rose alone. She watched him, as he leant over the bar, gave the order, and handed over the money. Watched, as he tapped a beer mat on the bar as he waited for their drinks, as he held a short, stilted conversation with the barmaid who was pouring their drinks. A few minutes later, he was returning to their booth, placing Rose's lager in front of her as he seated himself again.

"Sorry I was late," Rose piped up after a few moments. "Tony got a bit upset. First time he's been away from me overnight since Dad died."

Alec nodded, not speaking as he sipped at the orange juice he'd purchased himself. They descended into another silence.

"So, uh, why don't you tell me about yourself?"

Alec blinked, and looked up from his drink to stare at Rose.

"I'm sorry?" he asked, brow furrowing.

"Tell me about yourself," Rose repeated, although she was beginning to wonder if she'd read Alec wrong, if he didn't want to. "You know loads about me, but I know next to nothing about you."

Alec studied her for several long moments, and Rose shifted uncomfortably in her seat as he scrutinised her.

"Well," he begun after a while, looking around the pub before returning his gaze to Rose, "I moved down from Glasgow about seven or eight months ago now, to take the position of Detective Inspector here in Broadchurch." He paused, took a breath, continued speaking. "During the Danny Latimer case, I collapsed and was taken to hospital. I have- had- arrhythmia. I've got a pacemaker now. I had the operation only a fortnight or so before your brother and yourself moved here."

Rose nodded, remaining silent and simply letting Alec talk. That explained why he hadn't been at work.

"I was suspended, near the end of the case. Unfit for duty. They said I could only return to work if I had the operation, had the pacemaker fitted." Alec trailed off and scoffed. "Only had it because I had nothing better to do."

Rose frowned at that, and couldn't keep silent any longer.

"What do you mean? How could you not have the operation? What about Ellie, and all your friends and family up in Glasgow?" she asked in confusion.

Alec stared at her.

"I didn't want it," he admitted after a while. "Didn't see much point in it, really. I'd… I'd given up. Discharged myself from hospital twice, despite Ellie's protests. She… They don't understand. Lying in that hospital bed, all those bloody machines beeping and alarms going off if you accidentally pull a wire out. Nurses coming in every now and then to take your blood pressure, the cuff so tight it feels like your arm will fall off. The whole thing… The whole place stinks of death." He paused, heaved out a sigh, took a swig of orange juice. "And anyway, my Dad is still up in Glasgow. Haven't spoken to him for years. There's my ex-wife, but she's not exactly someone I'd want to stay in touch with, not after what happened."

Rose nodded, trying to tamp down the disappointment she felt at the mention of an ex-wife. Alec was older than her, she knew that. There was no way she could expect there was no exes, wives or girlfriends. Besides, she'd had boyfriends. Well, two. But the point was, she had ex-boyfriends. Wasn't much difference between that and Alec having an ex-wife, was there? They may not have even been married long. And it was then that Rose realised Alec was watching her. She took a gulp of lager and met his gaze.

"I've scared you," he stated simply.

"No, I-" Rose began.

Alec, however, interrupted her.

"No, I have. I have an ex-wife. You're barely out of your teens; doubt you've had more than a few boyfriends at most." Alec sniffed, and Rose felt herself bristling slightly at his- correct- assumption. "I'm a lot older than you, Rose. I'm forty, you're twenty-three. I'd finished school before you were even born." He paused. "Maybe this wasn't a good idea."

He drained his glass and moved to get to his feet.

"Don't go."

Alec blinked, staring at Rose. For the first time, she looked vulnerable. She slid out of the booth, straightening in front of Alec. The heels she had on made her several inches taller, but she still had to look up at Alec to meet his eyes.

"You… Yeah, it surprised me a bit," Rose admitted slowly, "but that doesn't mean you have to leave. I should have guessed that you'd have had ex-partners, should have realised that before. But don't leave. Look, I'll get another round in, there's no need to leave so early."

Alec sniffed and surveyed Rose for a few moments, before sinking back into the booth. Rose grinned.

"Right, then, want another drink?" Rose asked. "I'm paying."

Alec opened his mouth to respond, but suddenly his phone rang. Shooting Rose an apologetic look, he pulled his phone from his pocket, answering the call.

"Hello?"

"Dad? It's me. I'm in Broadchurch. At the train station."


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: In which Alec talks with his daughter, Rose gets a phone call of her own, and Rose and Alec's relationship possibly develops a little further.**

Alec blinked. He could feel Rose's confused gaze on him, but he had more important things to worry about. His daughter was in Broadchurch.

"Freya?" he asked, having finally found his voice again. "What… Why are you here? What about your Mum? And school?"

He listened as his daughter stammered out a reply, about how one of the Glaswegian papers had found out about the article Olly had written for the Broadchurch Echo, about the truth about Sandbrook. How it had been his wife, not Alec who'd lost the evidence, how she'd been having an affair. How he'd covered for her. And then, as Freya moved on to explain how she'd confronted her Mum, questioned her, Alec heard the sounds of his daughter's sobs, and his heart broke for her.

"Just… Just calm down, sweetheart," he told her, speaking over her sobbed explanation of the past few hours' events. "I'll be right there. Just… Stay there."

And then he was ending the call, and everything seemed a bit fuzzy, a bit dream-like. His daughter was in Broadchurch. Actually, properly in Broadchurch. And she'd phoned him. Spoken to him. For the first time in months. Almost a year. Alec was on his feet then, apologising to Rose.

"I've got to go," he told her, and he regretted cutting their date- was it a date? - short, he really did. But Freya needed him. "My… My daughter's at the train station. Came down from Glasgow on her own. She's only fifteen."

Rose nodded, not speaking, and Alec wasn't sure whether to feel grateful or guilty. This wasn't how the evening was meant to go. She'd wanted to get to know him. She hadn't planned on an ex-wife and a daughter being thrown into the mix.

"I'll, uh, I'll give you a call," he assured her, beginning to move towards the door.

"Yeah," Rose responded quietly.

Definitely shocked, Alec decided. He took several steps towards the door, before pausing, turning around, and returning to Rose. She was still sat in the booth, looking a little unsure of herself.

"I will call," he assured her quietly. "Once I sort Freya out. I'll phone later tonight."

Rose nodded, giving him a small smile. Alec swallowed, and then ducked down, pressing a chaste kiss to Rose's cheek.

"Speak to you later," he told her.

And then, he was making his way out of the pub.

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose sat in silence, on her own in the pub. She'd make a quick visit to the bar, to order another lager, but she'd long since drained the pint glass. It was still too early to go home, not even nine o'clock. If she'd been back on the estate, if her Dad had still been alive, if she'd been out with old school mates, or work friends, they'd be ordering another round in, laughing about how they still had hours of time left ahead of them before it was time to fall into a taxi and head home. But she wasn't back on the estate, and her Dad wasn't alive. She had her five year old brother to care for, and although Rose felt that finding out the man you had a crush- ok, a little voice in her head said, maybe a bit more than a crush- on had a fifteen year old daughter was a perfectly legitimate reason to get very, very drunk, she didn't fancy picking Tony up the next morning while she had a massive hangover. Tony wouldn't like it either. Rose had always been careful, when she'd gone out with friends after Tony had been born, particularly in the past two years or so, as Tony was becoming more alert, understanding more about what was happening around him. He'd only ever seen Rose drunk, about a year ago, and had only ever seen her with a hangover once- the following morning. He hadn't particularly liked it, and had gotten particularly upset when he found Rose feeling rather nauseous the following morning. She didn't want a repeat of that event, even though Tony was older now, and she didn't want to upset her brother. He'd been through enough recently. Rose's mobile suddenly vibrated in the clutch bag she'd brought along and she blinked as it startled her out of her reverie. Not sure whether to be relieved or annoyed by the interruption, she dug the phone out of the small bag and answered the call.

"Hi, Ellie."

**~StormWolf10~**

"Sorry I had to call," Ellie sighed as she ushered Rose into the house, "but Tony was getting really upset. Wouldn't stop crying."

Rose sighed at that.

"It's ok," Rose responded, although she sounded dejected. "Can't be helped. Not if Tony wants to go home."

The words were barely out of Rose's mouth when her little brother, clad only in his light blue star pyjamas, came barrelling down Ellie's stairs, almost tumbling as he did so.

"Careful, sweetheart!" Rose told him, darting forward to catch her brother as he lost his footing on the final step.

Tony didn't reply; he merely buried his face in Rose's neck, clinging to her as she lifted him onto her hip. He'd evidently heard her voice from upstairs, and moments later, Tom appeared at the top of the stairs, Tony's rucksack in his hands. The eleven year old descended the stairs and settled the rucksack against the wall, handing Rose Tony's dragon toy. She smiled gratefully as she took the toy and encouraged Tony to take it from her.

"'S alright, sweetheart," Rose murmured in her brother's ear, smoothing back his blonde hair. "I told you I'd come if Ellie called, didn't I?"

The boy nodded into her shoulder.

"Wanna go home?" Rose asked.

Again, Tony nodded, but made no effort to speak, or to unclasp his arms from around Rose's neck, despite now clinging to his dragon toy.

"Did Alec mind?" Ellie asked quietly, watching as Tom quietly excused himself with a small wave at Tony before heading back upstairs to his bedroom. "About you cutting the date short?"

Rose scoffed.

"Nah. He'd already left," Rose responded, a slightly bitter smile gracing her lips.

"Already left?" Ellie echoed, brow furrowing in shock and confusion.

Rose nodded, laughing mirthlessly. She was surprised that she had to blink away tears as she met Ellie's gaze again.

"His daughter called, Ellie."

**~StormWolf10~**

Alec Hardy sat in his car, staring out over the dashboard. He'd pulled up at his house nearly five minutes before, but had made no move to actually get out of the car. Instead, he watched. He watched as Rose left Ellie's house, Tony cuddled to her and bundled in his coat. The brisk March air was cold, and he couldn't help but notice that Rose wasn't wearing a coat. Had she not been wearing a coat when they'd met at the pub? She couldn't have been, Alec realised, because the first thing he'd noticed was her dress. Low neckline, hugged her curves, only reached mid-thigh. She'd most definitely not been wearing a coat. Tony only appeared to be in pyjamas, head buried in his older sister's neck as she made her way down the road towards their home. He wouldn't be surprised, Alec decided, if Rose toppled over in those heels; Tony settled on her left hip, his rucksack slung over her right shoulder, surely she couldn't actually walk in those heels? But it appeared so, and soon, Rose was rounding the bend in the road, disappearing from view.

"Dad?"

Alec blinked, and looked over at his daughter. His daughter, Freya. She was there, really sat in his car with him. Alec half expected it to be a dream, that it would be nothing more than that. But then Freya frowned, and reached for his hand, and he felt her skin on his. She was really there. Long brown hair, bordering on ginger in certain lights, Alec's eyes, her mother's facial shape and nose. His daughter. He hadn't seen her since he'd moved from Glasgow, hadn't seen her since she'd been convinced he'd cheated on her Mum, since she'd declared he'd wanted nothing to do with her.

"We'd better get inside," Alec said suddenly, unbuckling his seatbelt and throwing open his car door. "We need to talk."

Freya nodded, somewhat reluctantly climbing out of the car, dragging her bulging rucksack after her. She walked towards the front door of Alec's house like a girl condemned. Alec couldn't help a small smile forming on his face; his daughter knew she was in trouble coming down from Glasgow on her own. She stood in silence, a worried expression on her face as she waited for her Dad to unlock the front door and usher her inside.

"Does your Mother know you're here?" Alec asked as he led his daughter through to the sitting room.

Freya sniffed, and looked away.

"Freya?" Alec prompted. "I don't want your Mother turning up accusing me of kidnapping you, or some rubbish."

"She knows," Freya responded quietly after a few moments. "Well, sort of."

"Sort of," Alec echoed, brow furrowing. "What do you mean 'sort of'?"

Freya sighed, dropping her bag to the floor and sinking onto the sofa.

"We had an argument. I told her I'd come to see you, that I'd leave and come and live here," Freya explained, not meeting her Dad's gaze.

"And what did she say?" Alec asked, brow still furrowed.

"She said 'go on, then. Go on. I'll even pack your bags.'"

Freya's tone was despondent, monotone. A far cry from the little girl Alec had played with, taken to the park, been forced to endure teddy bear tea parties with.

"So she just let you go," Alec stated.

Freya scoffed.

"She doesn't care, Dad. Hasn't cared about me for months," Freya told him, staring across the room. "She was happy at first, happy that I'd decided I wanted no contact with you. Kept going on and on about how you were poison, about how you had abandoned us without a second thought. And all that time… All that time, she was the poisoned one."

"Freya-" Alec began. He may not like his ex-wife, but he still felt a little uneasy about Freya bad-mouthing her Mother. They needed to have a conversation, a proper conversation about the whole thing. Freya was old enough to decide for herself whether or not she wanted contact, but she couldn't just cut her Mum off, no matter what she'd done. She was still Freya's Mum, and Alec understood how painful it was to lose contact from a child.

"But she _is_ poisoned, Dad! She was having an affair behind your back! She lied to my face! And the worst thing is, she doesn't even care about us, because she's got her new boyfriend, and the baby, and-"

"Baby?"

Alec's heart sank, and Freya finally turned to look at him, wide-eyed.

"I'm sorry, Dad. You weren't meant to find out like that!"

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose Tyler sighed, rolling over in the bed, careful not to elbow the bed's other occupant in the face. Her brother was curled up beside her in the bed, making little snuffling sounds and clenching his dragon toy to his chest. At least Tony was getting some sleep. He'd demanded Rose stay with him during the night, and she'd tried to say no, tried to persuade him to sleep alone. But then Tony had begun crying, and screaming, throwing his toys across the room and thumping the walls. Part of Rose was aware that when Tony had done that back when their Dad had been alive, he'd been put in a timeout, or sent to his room. Long story short, he'd have been told off and punished. But after the day he'd had, after being so panicked Rose wouldn't be there to pick him up the next day, Rose hadn't had the heart to punish him for his tantrum. So instead, she had shushed him and hugged him and coddled him. She'd persuaded the boy to sleep in her room, as she had been really reluctant to try and squeeze herself and Tony into his small single bed. So she'd bundled her brother into her own bed, switched on her tiny, bulky TV and slid Tony's 'Cars' DVD into the DVD player, letting the film run on repeat twice, finishing long after Tony had dropped off to sleep. Rose knew it was wrong, knew that she should have put him in his own bed, that her brother was a growing boy who should be more than capable of sleeping alone, even if a nightlight is needed. She should have put her foot down, not given into his tantrum, it would serve her no good in the future, not if he begins to expect her to give in to his demands every time.

She sighed as her digital clock flickered over to 3:37am. She just couldn't switch off. Alec Hardy had kissed her. Sort of. On the cheek. Before leaving her alone in the pub. But he'd still kissed her. What did that mean? Would he object to another date? Would they be interrupted again? What if Tony refused to go round Ellie's again? How was Rose going to be able to go out and enjoy a date whilst knowing she had to be home by half nine, ten at the latest so that she could get Tony home and put him to bed? She sighed again in frustration. Rose was fully aware that a lot of people did that, a lot of parents. Single Mothers, single Fathers, going on dates and meeting new people. Parents who went out for a meal without the kids. They all managed, all enjoyed an evening out and still got home in time to relieve the babysitter at a reasonable hour. But Rose wasn't a parent. She was an older sibling, yes, but she wasn't a Mother. She just had to act like one for the next decade or so. And it was so unfair. She was still young, barely into her twenties. All her friends back in London were still going out to clubs on weekends, going out with their boyfriends, their girlfriends, having a good time and not having to worry about babysitters and paying them, not having to worry that they'd get a phone call that their kid would want them home, that they wanted to leave the sleepover that moment. They didn't have to worry about getting a call like the one Rose had gotten from Ellie, that Tony was distraught and inconsolable, and that he'd been demanding to go home. She couldn't blame him, not after everything that had happened over the past two months or so. But it did leave Rose uncertain of just where she stood with Alec Hardy.

And Alec Hardy had broken his promise.

He hadn't called.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Bit of an Alec-centric chapter, to get things established with him and Freya…**

Alec groaned in realisation. It was the early hours of Sunday morning, as it had taken longer than expected to settle Freya into one of the two spare rooms, and by the time he and Freya had finished talking- carefully skating round the issue that Freya's Mum had evidently moved on from Alec already-, he'd been exhausted. He'd fallen into bed and dozed for some time, before waking with a jolt. He hadn't phoned Rose. He'd promised her. He'd kissed her on the cheek, and said "speak to you later". But he hadn't, had he? After all the chaos with Freya getting upset, and the revelation about his ex, and having to find something for Freya's tea because she hadn't eaten… Well, he'd forgotten about Rose. And he felt awful about it, he really did. It was too late to phone now, she'd be asleep. Alec toyed with the idea of phoning Ellie at a more reasonable hour, asking her for help. Or going round and explaining what had happened the previous night. But Ellie would probably be on Rose's side, that he'd been an idiot to forget to call. She'd probably hit him, and guilt-trip him about how Rose probably felt awful, that he forgot to call. Probably thought that he'd hated the date, that he'd been grateful for the interruption…

Alec shook himself. He couldn't think like that. Mustn't think like that. Rose would understand, wouldn't she? Understand that his daughter had turned up, that he had to put her first. Like Rose had to put Tony first. Speaking of that, he couldn't help but wonder why he'd seen Rose collecting Tony from Ellie's last night? Had the boy wanted to go home, or did Rose want him home after her appalling date? Didn't want to be alone?

There was no point worrying about it now, Alec reasoned, not at four o'clock in the morning. When it was a more reasonable hour, he would call Rose… No. No, he would walk round. It wasn't far, and she deserved an explanation face-to-face. Freya was old enough to fend for herself for an hour or so. Alec felt a little more relaxed, then. He would go and speak to Rose in the morning, at a reasonable hour, after he'd spoken to Freya. And then, before Alec knew it, he was drifting off to sleep again…

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose yawned and leant a little heavier on the shopping trolley.

"Can I get sweets, Rose?" Tony asked as he appeared in front of the trolley, staring up expectantly at her.

"You've still got sweets at home in the cupboard," Rose responded calmly.

Tony pouted, and before Rose could stop him, had run off again. She groaned. She was too tired to be chasing after her brother in the supermarket, too tired to deal with his constant questions and puppy-dog eyes. But they needed food, so they had little choice. Rose had slept fitfully the night before, partially because her brother kept wriggling around, and partially because a small part of her had hoped Alec would call, even in the early hours of the morning. Yawning again, Rose rubbed at her eyes and sighed. Realising that her brother wasn't going to come running back, and that he was probably eying up junk food, Rose began pushing the trolley in the direction Tony had disappeared in.

Money wasn't as tight now that Rose had taken on extra shifts, and part of her was grateful, but she missed the time she'd spend with Tony, cuddled up on the sofa together before tea. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays now saw Rose getting home at around half five, possibly even later on some occasions, but it paid well, and with Easter just a few weeks away, Rose was hoping to use some of the extra money on a treat for Tony. As Rose rounded the aisle, she groaned as she saw Tony stood, clutching several family packs of crisps to him and grinning.

"No, we don't need all of them, Tony," Rose sighed, making her way towards her brother. "Put them back."

Shoulders slumped, Tony's brow furrowed.

"But-" he began.

However, one warning look from his sister, and he reluctantly returned all but one packet to the shelves.

"You carry on like that and you'll have to sit in the trolley," Rose told her brother as he returned to her side.

Tony's bottom lip began trembling, but before the boy could begin to cry, Rose was off again, making her way down the aisles. The quicker they did the shopping, the quicker they could go home.

**~StormWolf10~**

"And you're sure you'll be alright on your own?"

Freya huffed, glancing up from her mobile.

"Yes," she sighed, repeating herself for what felt like the millionth time. "I'll be fine."

"Good," Alec nodded, more to himself than his daughter. "I'm only going up the road. Need to speak to someone. Will only be an hour."

Freya nodded again, frowning slightly. Her Dad was shifting from foot to foot nervously, dressed in a suit and tie.

"Must be someone important," she said quietly.

Alec blinked.

"Why do you say that?" he asked with a frown.

"Because you're wearing a suit and tie. You never wear a suit and tie when you're not at work," Freya responded, nodding towards Alec's attire.

The Scotsman shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny of the fifteen year old's gaze, and something unreasonable flitted over his face.

"Yeah, well, things change," he murmured.

Freya opened her mouth to reply, but then Alec was speaking again.

"Now, keep your mobile on, don't answer the phone or the door, and don't leave the house," Alec told her, pointing a finger at Freya as he spoke. "You and I need to have a talk about school once I get back."

Freya grimaced, but then her Dad was heading out of the door.

**~StormWolf10~**

Alec stood outside Rose's front door, straightening his tie. He wasn't entirely sure why he was so nervous. But then, what did he do if Tony answered the door? What if Tony asked why he was there? But that wouldn't happen, would it?

Alec shook his head. He was getting worked up over nothing. It had been an odd twenty-four hours. First he went on a date with Rose, then his daughter arrived, then he forgot to call Rose despite promising… Freya had left her Mum's, had walked out on her life in Glasgow, her friends, family, education. And it was up to Alec to sort it all. He wasn't quite sure if he could do it all.

But now wasn't the time to be worrying about Freya. Now was the time to be sorting things out with Rose. Drawing himself to his full height, Alec sniffed and knocked on the door.

No reply.

He frowned.

He knocked again.

Still no reply.

Alec took a step back, looking up at the house. The curtains were all open in the windows he could see, and it was about ten o'clock on a Sunday morning. Rose had said the night before that Tony's football had been cancelled. Had she been mistaken? Alec sighed as he peered through the window. It didn't look as if anyone was home. He should probably get back to Freya, and call Rose later that day. A little put-out, Alec slid his hands into his pockets and began walking away.

**~StormWolf10~**

There was a knock on the front door. Freya blinked, and looked up from the copy of the Broadchurch Echo that she'd been flicking through. Her Dad had told her not to answer the door. With a sniff, Freya returned her attention to the newspaper. Another knock. Freya ignored it. And then another knock.

"Come on, Alec!" a woman's voice called through the letterbox. "I need to speak to you."

Freya didn't move from her seat on the sofa.

"Don't be an arse, Alec," the woman continued. "Come on. Rose told me you left the date early last night, something about your daughter?" The woman paused, and Freya listened with a frown on her face. "She's upset. You… I know you never expected your daughter to just turn up. But she's upset you never told her that you have a daughter. You know practically everything about Rose, and yet she knows hardly anything about you. I know you don't like talking, but I also know that you do like Rose. And she deserves to be talked to, by you. You owe her an explanation, Alec."

There was silence then, and Freya had lost interest in her newspaper.

"Well," the woman continued, sounding resigned, "I can't stand here yelling through your letterbox all day, Hardy, Fred will be annoying Tom if I don't get back soon."

And then there was a clang as the letterbox was let go. Before Freya was aware of what she was doing, she was on her feet, hurrying to the door. She wrenched it open just as the woman was walking away. She turned around, a smile on her lips and a quick retort that died on her tongue as she saw Freya.

"Oh," the woman murmured before raising her voice. "You must be Alec's daughter. I'm Ellie Carter."

Ellie stepped back towards the door, hand outstretched. Freya shook it a little reluctantly.

"Freya Hardy," Freya responded. "Now, who exactly is this Rose you were talking about?"

Ellie's eyes widened, and she swallowed.

**~StormWolf10~**

Alec groaned. He'd not even unlocked his door, but he could hear two voices. Two voices that he knew well. One was Freya's, the other was Ellie's. Reluctantly unlocking the door, he stepped inside. Both his daughter and his friend turned to face him.

"Carter," Alec greeted Ellie, face impassive. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to speak to you," Ellie admitted, a little embarrassed. "Accidentally ended up talking to Freya."

"Accidentally?" Alec echoed. "How do you accidentally-"

"Dad," Freya cut in, face as impassive as her father's. "Who's Rose?"

Alec immediately turned to look at Ellie, one eyebrow arched.

"Sorry," Ellie murmured, an apologetic look on her face. "I thought you were in the house."

Alec returned his gaze to his daughter, who was watching him with her arms folded.

"Rose is… Rose is a friend of mine," Alec responded after a while, nodding to himself.

Freya blinked.

"Dad," she sighed, shoulders slumping. "Don't lie to me. I'm not a little kid anymore, I can take it." She paused, stepping forward and meeting her Dad's eyes despite the height difference. "Are you seeing someone?"

Alec's mouth opened. And closed again, with no words coming out.

"Dad, it's alright if you are," Freya continued, mouth twitching in amusement. "I mean, Mum's been seeing her new boyfriend a while, they're together, and I have to accept that." She trailed off, and snorted, looking away for a few moments. "For god's sake, Dad! Mum's having another kid! As long as you haven't gotten this Rose pregnant, it can't be as bad as what Mum's been doing!"

Alec spluttered at that, and Ellie smirked, stifling a laugh.

"I… We… I'm not having this discussion with you, Freya," Alec ground out after a few moments. "And Rose and I are just friends. I… We… It was our first date last night."

Freya blanched.

"I crashed your first date with this woman?" she asked quietly, although she seemed to be talking more to herself.

It was at that point that Ellie took her cue to leave.

"I'd better be getting back, I left Tom in charge of Fred," she explained as she saw herself out.

Moments later, it was just Alec and Freya.

"Dad, you should have said something," Freya told him quietly, cheeks still flushed with embarrassment. "I'd have gotten the bus, or a taxi, or something, and met you here."

Alec, however, shook his head.

"No," he replied firmly. "You're my responsibility. I wasn't able to speak to Rose, she must have been out. But I'll phone later, and explain everything to her. You have nothing to feel bad about."

Freya, however, looked unconvinced.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: In which Freya and Rose meet, and Freya worries…**

By the time Easter arrived, Rose and Tony had been in Broadchurch almost two months. Tony had whined and complained when Rose told him they'd be attending the church service on Easter Sunday, and was still whining as she led him into the church. Smiling at the people milling around outside the church, Rose ducked down and grabbed her brother by his shoulders.

"Just stop it, Tony, we won't be here long," Rose told him. "Then we can go home and you can open one of your Easter eggs after dinner, yeah?"

Tony brightened at that, and nodded. As Rose straightened, Tony took her hand and allowed her to lead him into the church. It was busy, and Rose guessed that virtually all of Broadchurch turned up for the Easter service. She quickly located Ellie, Tom and Fred, and led Tony over to them. With a smile at Ellie, Rose and Tony slid into the pew. Ellie grinned.

"Thanks for dropping those Easter eggs round for the boys last night," Ellie told Rose as Tom and Tony eagerly began talking about football.

Rose just shrugged.

"Well, thought it would be nice to get them something," Rose replied calmly. "And thanks for the one you sent Tony."

Ellie opened her mouth to speak, but then something caught her gaze, by the door. Frowning, Rose turned. Most of the people were settling down in the wooden pews, the talking dying down even as the vicar came out of the antechamber. Rose had met Paul Coates a few times now, and he seemed very friendly, but it was the first time she'd actually come to a church service; her parents had never been church-goers, except for at Christmas. And it was then, as Rose tore herself back to the present, that she saw what Ellie was staring at. Alec Hardy had just walked in, a teenage girl trailing behind him. Freya, if Rose remembered correctly from her talk with Alec. The Scotsman met her gaze, and led Freya over, sliding into the pew beside Rose. He gave her a nod as he sat down. Rose smirked. Alec and she had finally had a talk, the evening after their somewhat awkward date. Alec had explained a bit, about Freya, and about how he was sorry their date had been ruined. That had been two weeks ago, but this was the first time Rose had seen Freya. Glancing past Alec, Rose saw the teenager had her eyes firmly set on the vicar as he took his place in front of the congregation, and just for a moment, Rose couldn't help the smirk that spread across her face as she saw that both Alec and Freya had matching expressions on their faces.

**~StormWolf10~**

The service was as to be expected; lots of hymns being sung, some bible readings being read out, and fidgety children wanting to go home and eat chocolate. By the time the congregation were spilling out of the church, Rose was heartily sick of the way Alec was acting, as if she were a total stranger. She understood that his daughter arriving may have altered their impending relationship slightly, perhaps slowed it down somewhat (if that was possible, given how slow they'd been going), or postponing it until the girl was settled in. But Alec seemed to be downright ignoring her. Tony and Tom had been giggling and whispering throughout the service, earning them some nudges and stern looks from Ellie and Rose, and the two boys were now wandering along ahead, still talking happily. Rose was somewhat relieved that Tom didn't mind five year old Tony tagging along after him; her little brother was still struggling to make friends at school, from what the teachers were saying.

"Go speak to him," Ellie murmured as she reached Rose's side, jerking her head towards Alec's retreating form.

Rose bit her lip and looked at the older woman.

"Is that such a good idea, Ellie?" Rose asked uncertainly.

Ellie rolled her eyes and adjusted Fred on her hip.

"Look, you'll have to meet Freya sometime," Ellie pointed out with a huff. "And you may as well get it over with." She paused. "I've spoken to her a few times now; she's a very pleasant girl. Very grown up for her age."

Rose thought for a few moments, watching Ellie. And then, taking a deep breath, she picked up her pace and set off after Alec and Freya. She caught up with them just outside the churchyard, and Alec turned to look at her expectantly.

"You going to introduce me, then?" Rose asked with a smile, gaze flitting to Freya.

Alec blinked, and Rose couldn't help but notice that his daughter smirked at his response. With Alec still gaping, Freya stepped forward and offered Rose her hand.

"Freya Hardy," Freya introduced herself calmly.

"Rose Tyler," Rose responded with a small smile, shaking the girl's hand.

"Sorry for crashing your date with my Dad the other week," Freya continued with a small smile.

Rose smirked and shrugged.

"Don't worry about it," Rose told the girl, risking a glance at Alec, who was watching the exchange with a frown. "You needed your Dad. I understand."

Freya seemed to relax then, even as people milled around them.

"I am sorry, though," Freya repeated with a smile. "And if you two wanted to try again…"

Both Alec's and Rose's eyes widened at that, and their eyes met. Freya smirked at their reactions.

"Dad's told me a fair bit about you," Freya continued with a grin. "About you and your little brother. He was a bit reluctant at first, but once I got him talking-"

"Freya," Alec cut in eventually, stepping forward, "I'm sure Rose doesn't want to hear this."

Rose and Freya shared a grin, and then Rose looked over her shoulder to where Tony and Tom were running around, Ellie keeping an eye on them as Fred toddled about.

"I'd better be getting Tony home," Rose announced after a few moments, resigned. "He'll be wanting his dinner, and the last thing I need is another tantrum from him."

Alec nodded in understanding.

"I'll call you later," Alec told her seriously.

"And I'll make sure he actually does call this time," Freya added with a grin.

Rose laughed, nodding at the girl. She heard Tony shout, call her name, and she turned to see him running towards her. When she turned back round, the Hardys were gone.

**~StormWolf10~**

Her Dad was in the kitchen, banging saucepans together as he set about making a Sunday roast. Freya suppressed a smirk at that. He'd never been particularly organised in the kitchen, and although he was actually quite a decent cook, but he was rubbish about organising the ingredients, and getting everything set up on time. In fact, she very much doubted they'd be eating much before 2 o'clock. With a sigh, Freya reached for the TV remote, intent on drowning out the racket her Dad was making. She couldn't help but turn her attention to her meeting with Rose earlier. She wasn't quite what Freya had been expecting. Actually, Freya wasn't sure what she had been expecting. Her Mum's boyfriend… Well, Freya hated him. A part of her had expected her to hate her Dad's girlfriend. But she didn't. It was odd, really. Seeing her Mum with any man other than her Dad had hurt, caused a physical ache in her chest. But seeing her Dad sit with Rose in the church, hearing her Dad talk about Rose when she'd finally managed to get him talking the night after she'd arrived… They just seemed to work. However, one thing that had taken Freya aback was Rose's age. She'd been expecting someone at least a few years older, but instead, her Dad's girlfriend was only seven years older than herself. With a five year old brother. And no matter how much her Dad protested, she was going to refer to Rose as his girlfriend, because in Freya's opinion, they were as good as.

But Freya was almost completely certain she could get along with Rose, given a bit of time, and more opportunity to talk with the woman. Maybe meet her little brother. That caused Freya's brow to furrow. Maybe she was jumping to conclusions, but if Rose and her Dad's relationship remained strong, would that make Rose's little brother her uncle? Despite Freya being ten years older than him? It made Freya's head hurt, and she couldn't ask her Dad, because he didn't talk about that sort of thing. Not now, and not before.

Her Dad had changed, that much was obvious to Freya. His broken marriage had broken him. He'd changed, become hard, almost uncaring. Many of the town residents hadn't even bothered to say more than a few words of greeting to him, and Alec made no move to strike up conversation. Even Ellie, even though they were neighbours and friends, her Dad called her by her last name. She'd known her Dad to do that to work colleagues, but never friends, and he'd always sounded cheerier before, like it was a nickname. But with Ellie, although it was a nickname, Freya could tell there was a story behind it, could tell that there was tension. From the few brief conversations she'd had with Ellie during the week, she'd gathered that her Dad hadn't been particularly friendly upon his arrival in Broadchurch. But then, giving what had happened in his final weeks in Glasgow, with Freya refusing to speak to him, her Mum spreading his so-called affair around the station, the lost evidence from Sandbrook… Freya still felt guilty about ignoring him, and couldn't help but think that she was at least part of the reason her Dad had changed. He wasn't the father she had grown up with, the man who had played with her as a child, made her teddy bear talk in funny voices, let her wear his Police helmet back when he was still in uniform… That man had gone, and Freya could only hope that Rose could be the one to bring him back…


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: A bit more conversation between Alec and Rose here…**

As her mobile buzzed, Rose lifted her head to look at the clock in the staff room. She'd been taking her break, hands curled round a mug of tea as she sat, deep in thought. She'd been thinking about Alec, and about Freya, and whether she should have Tony meet with the girl. But she wasn't sure where her relationship with Alec was going. They were having another date, that coming Saturday, with Ellie looking after Tony again. And she and Alec had talked a lot. But Rose still had no idea whether he regarded their relationship as a long-term or short-term one. With a sigh, she reached for her mobile and answered the call.

"Hello?" she asked.

And, as the person on the phone began talking, Rose's brow furrowed. It was the school, about Tony. Apparently, he'd been complaining about feeling sick, that he had a headache, and- according to his teacher- felt rather warm.

"Are you sure?" Rose asked, brow furrowing further. "He seemed alright this morning, just a bit tired."

The more the receptionist spoke, however, the more Rose doubted herself. Her little brother had seemed a little lethargic that morning, but she'd just assumed he hadn't wanted to go into school. With a sigh, Rose interrupted the receptionist.

"Ok, I'll be there soon to pick him up."

She then hung up, getting to her feet and heading off to find her manager.

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose barely slept that night, with Tony's near-constant moaning that he felt sick, that he had a headache, that he was too hot. She'd not had to deal with her brother being ill before, other than keeping an eye on him for an hour or so while their Dad went to the pharmacy to get him some calpol. But calpol had been given, and if she gave him any more, Rose feared she'd knock him out. Which was beginning to sound like a good idea when, at five am, she was in the kitchen fixing Tony a drink of juice. By the time she was getting ready for work, she really just wanted to sleep. But instead, Rose bundled Tony into his coat and led him out of the house. Her manager had suggested taking the time off when Rose had called in that morning, but Rose really couldn't afford not to be working, and so instead had asked for permission to take Tony into work. Her manager had reluctantly agreed, as long as the boy remained in the staff room.

However, halfway to work, with Tony dragging his feet as Rose urged him to get a move on, a silver car pulled up beside them.

"What're you doing?"

Rose blinked, and looked round to see Alec peering out of the opened car window. He'd been back at work just over fortnight, returning just before Easter, and Rose couldn't quite fathom why he wasn't at work now.

"I'm going to work," Rose responded with a frown.

Alec raised an eyebrow, and looked Tony up and down.

"No, you're not," he responded. "Get in the car."

"Alec," Rose sighed, "I don't have time for this-"

"Rose, your brother is sick, you can't take him into work with you," Alec sighed, tone suggesting he was already getting frustrated.

"He's alright, just a bit nauseous," Rose told him.

"No, he's not, Rose," Alec told her calmly. "Look at his face."

Rose looked.

"Oh," she murmured, wondering how she hadn't seen it before. "So what is that? Some sort of insect bite?"

Alec blinked at her.

"It's chickenpox, Rose," Alec announced seriously. "You can't take him into work like that. They'll turn you away. Now get him in the car."

Rose blinked, and looked down at her brother, who was beginning to look rather tearful at being dragged around for no apparent reason. With a sigh, she realised Alec was right. She opened the back door of Alec's car and bundled her brother in, sliding in beside him.

**~StormWolf10~**

"How'd you know it was chickenpox?" Rose asked, watching as Alec gave Tony the once-over.

They'd taken the boy home, stripping the poor lad of clothes at Alec's insistence the moment they got him up to his bedroom, to see just how far along the illness was. There were clusters of the rash-like spots all over the boy's back and stomach, as well as his legs.

"Freya had it," Alec explained, turning Tony around surprisingly gently. "When she was about Tony's age." He paused, and looked up at Rose, frowning. "How did you not notice? You must remember from when you had it? Or were you really little?"

Rose shifted awkwardly, before moving over to Tony's bed and picking up his pyjamas. Instead of answering Alec's question, she moved over to her brother, helping him to get his pyjamas on.

"Rose?" Alec asked, brow furrowing further at her silence.

"I've not had it, ok?" she snapped suddenly as she helped Tony into his pyjama bottoms. "Is that a problem?"

"Not a problem as such," Alec admitted slowly, watching as Rose straightened and lifted her brother onto her hip, leaving Alec knelt on Tony's bedroom floor. "But it is contagious. More serious in adults than children, too."

Rose scoffed.

"And what am I supposed to do?" she asked, eyebrow arched. "Leave Tony to fend for himself just because I might get ill?"

"You've been around him; you've most likely already contracted the illness. We'll have to keep an eye on you," Alec told her as he got to his feet.

"We?" Rose echoed.

"Rose, you can't go out, not while you're still contagious, not really. Plus I doubt Tony will want to go out," Alec said, nodding towards the five year old on her hip. "The only exception would be to get you to a doctor."

"A doctor?" Rose echoed.

"You'll need medication, Rose," Alec informed her.

She made to leave the room, then, and Alec followed.

"Haven't you got to get to work?" she asked as she carried Tony into the sitting room to settle him on the sofa.

Alec shrugged.

"I can call in," he told her. "Family problem."

Rose blinked, and looked over at him.

"Family problem?" she echoed.

Alec sniffed and nodded.

"Yeah, well, it's only a matter of time before you begin showing symptoms," Alec told her.

"But I can't ask you to take time off work for me, Alec," Rose sighed. "I could call Wilf, or Donna."

"Oh, yes, because neither of them work," Alec responded sarcastically.

Rose ignored Alec's comment and pushed past him to get to the kitchen.

"Do you want a drink, or are you getting back to the station?"

**~StormWolf10~**

"Freya," Alec called as he stepped into his house. "Are you in?"

He heard his daughter call back "yeah" from upstairs, and moments later, she was descending the stairs, dressed in a pair of tracksuit bottoms and running shirt. Alec blinked.

"Been out for a run, then?" he asked his daughter, noting she'd tied her hair up as well.

Freya nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, well, couldn't sit around here all day, could I?" the girl replied with a slight shrug. "And besides, I missed it."

Alec nodded, thinking about his response for a few moments. Ever since she was little, his girl had been athletic, looking forward to school sport's days. He still remembered when she'd gotten upset when, at aged 7, she'd come second in her Primary school sports day. She'd continued the hobby on to senior school, joining the school's track team. Alec felt rather pained when he recalled that the local senior school didn't offer the same sports activities as Freya's Glaswegian school, and he hoped she wouldn't mind too much.

"Listen," he began after a long while, finally figuring out his response, "I think we need to sit down and have a talk."

"About Rose?" Freya asked, brow furrowing.

"About school," Alec corrected.

Almost immediately, Freya's arms were folded across her chest, body tense as she stared over her Dad's shoulder at a wall. There was a photo of her and Alec, from when she was about eight years old, hanging on the wall in a simple wooden frame. She'd given it to him for Christmas some years ago. She hadn't been aware he'd taken it with him when he moved out, but then Freya realised, he must have taken a lot of his stuff with him. And then, she was moving, more of her own accord, Alec's hand on her elbow as he steered her towards the sofa. Sinking reluctantly onto the sofa, Freya curled up in the seat, sock-clad feet curled beneath her bum. Alec sat opposite her, hand never leaving her arm.

"I know you don't want to go back to Scotland," Alec began carefully. Freya snorted and rolled her eyes, but Alec ignored her. "But the truth of it is, I'm not sure the local school will accept you. It's April, Freya, exams start next month. What are you going to do, eh?"

Freya looked away, biting her lip and curling in on herself further.

"I can't go back to Glasgow, Dad," she told him quietly, sliding further down the sofa to bury her face in her knees to hide the tears that threatened to fall.

"I know you don't want to, Freya," Alec sighed, moving to pull his daughter into a hug. "But-"

"No, Dad, I can't!" Freya protested, pulling away to meet his gaze. She was wide-eyed, her eyes already slightly red. "Mum's pulled me out of the school, the night she helped me pack, the Friday… She phoned school. It was only about four, so the secretary was still there. I can't go back, Dad. There's no place for me there."

Alec's eyes shut as he silently cursed. He could feel Freya's gaze on him.

"But your exams-" he began pointlessly, opening his eyes to look at his daughter.

Freya just shrugged, not sure what to say.

"This isn't something we can take lightly, Freya," Alec sighed, growing annoyed. Annoyed at himself for not discussing it earlier, annoyed at his ex-wife for un-enrolling Freya from school without a second thought. "What are we going to do? There's no guarantee we can get you into a school to take your exams."

Freya sniffed.

"I could get a job?" Freya suggested after a few moments.

Alec scoffed then.

"As what, Freya? You haven't finished senior school. You have no qualifications!" Alec pointed out harshly, growing frustrated.

Then, with a huff, Freya was on her feet and heading for the stairs. With a muttered curse, Alec got to his feet, following the girl. But he'd barely reached the stairs before he heard the tell-tale slam of a bedroom door. He groaned, and slouched down to sit on the stairs.

"Fan-_bloody_-tastic."


End file.
